


Danganronpa: ALUMNI

by atmmmmm



Category: Dangan Ronpa - All Media Types, Kuroshitsuji | Black Butler
Genre: Adult Ciel Phantomhive, Aged-Up Character(s), Attempted Murder, Blood and Gore, Fan Killing Game (Dangan Ronpa), Female Pronouns for Grell Sutcliff, Gen, I have some nasty deaths planned, I have to add that because of chapter 35, Just So We're Clear, Kinda?, Modern Era, Murder, Not Canon Compliant, One-Sided Attraction, Spoilers, Suicide, Trans Grell Sutcliff, What Have I Done, all minors in canon are now at least 20, also those are the only ships that are focused on?, because I love her, potentially? I haven't decided, there will be a warning for that chapter and chapter 36, there's hints of other ships but uh, to either? in terms of the overarching story I mean, yes I put literally everyone who's in this fic asdfasdfa, you know
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-27
Updated: 2020-10-21
Packaged: 2021-03-06 02:02:19
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 37
Words: 67,060
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25545595
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/atmmmmm/pseuds/atmmmmm
Summary: Subtitle: Killing School Reunion.Welcome to a new type of killing game, testing those who’ve graduated from Hope’s Peak and are currently successful people. As they’re all adults, it’s noted that this is an experimental game. How much farther will they go than previous contestants? Current hypothesis: they will rip each other to shreds until only two are left or they successfully fool the others. Only one or two will survive in the end.This is just Danganronpa but with modernized black butler characters. They're all human in this, btw. No connection to either canon, of course. Just figured that these characters would thrive in this environment.
Relationships: Ciel Phantomhive/Sieglinde Sullivan, Hannah Annafellows/Grell Sutcliff
Comments: 18
Kudos: 9





	1. Prologue

Ciel took a deep breath and gripped his suitcase even tighter. Hope’s Peak loomed over the young man. He had heard that it had been closed, so requesting for his return was absolutely urgent, right? 

As he walked into the school, he realized how quiet and empty it felt. It was nothing at all like the Hope’s Peak he knew; when he was in school, it was bustling with life, full of students. He had graduated a few years before… 

Something caught his attention. 

There was a surveillance camera pointed right at his face. It loomed over him, making the young man squint into the lens. There had been cameras in the school prior, but this one looked different than the ones he remembered. Hopefully that meant the school was more secure now. 

Everything seemed like it was back to normal. And that’s when he blacked out.

  
  


Monokuma Lesson #1: Always make sure you pack the essentials!

You never know when you could stumble upon a hungry bear. 

  
  


Ciel groaned loudly, catching the attention of others around him. 

“Oh, good. Look who decided to finally wake up,” a man said, voice full of pride. And yet, he spoke with the cadence of a teacher, “You’re late.” 

“Hmm?” Ciel sprung awake, taking in his surroundings. There were two men before him in a classroom. Ciel was sitting in a desk. 

“You weren’t late at all, you just fainted,” another man said. Ciel glanced at the two men. 

“He’s late nonetheless,” the first man who spoke said. He had short, mousy brown hair and brilliantly green eyes shielded by glasses. A couple of silver hairs littered his hairline. 

“It doesn’t matter. What matters is if he’s okay,” the second man replied, shaking his head. He had chin-length black hair, long bangs that framed his red eyes, and a mischievous smile. Ciel’s heart raced as he recognized those red eyes. 

“So! Are you okay?” the man with red eyes asked. 

“Yes… You were invited here?” Ciel said with a short nod, then gestured towards him. 

“Unfortunately,” the man with green eyes replied, pushing his glasses up with his right hand. The familiar man smirked. 

“Of course I was. After all, the Ultimate Butler always follows close behind the Ultimate Watchdog.” 

Ciel nodded, “Of course. It’s nice to see you, Sebastian.” 

“Oh. Great. You know each other. I’ll be leaving then,” the other man said, quickly leaving the classroom. 

“Was that the Ultimate Manager?” Ciel asked. Sebastian nodded. 

“It’s so odd to be back here, isn’t it?” Sebastian asked, “I haven’t even thought of returning here since…” Sebastian’s face turned sour. Ciel nodded in agreement. 

“I feel the same way. What happened was an awful tragedy that-” Ciel stopped talking, his brow furrowed as his eyes widened. 

“Is something the matter?” Sebastian asked. Ciel stared into Sebastian’s face, feeling sick. 

“I-” 

“Would you like some water?” Sebastian asked. Ciel shook his head. 

“No,” he said as the wave of nausea passed, “I’m fine. I just… something felt off.” 

“Oh, I agree with you,” Sebastian replied, “Something feels terribly off. Come now, let’s talk to the others and see what they’re up to.” Ciel lifted himself from the desk and followed Sebastian out of classroom 1-A. 

Ciel caught up with him and walked beside him, “How long have I been out?” It felt as if everything was back to normal; Ciel was the Queen of England’s Watchdog with Sebastian the Butler right at his side. Sebastian had even tutored Ciel as the Watchdog attended Hope’s Peak. 

“Only about an hour. You arrived at seven AM - I noticed that because I had arrived right as you were walking into Hope’s Peak. As I approached you, you fainted. I then carried you in and that’s when I saw-” 

“So it’s eight AM?” Ciel asked in a frantic voice. 

“Yes- well, now it’s eight o’three, so we best hurry if we don’t want the others to complain,” Sebastian said. They both rushed to the main entrance.

That’s when Ciel gasped.

“What the bloody hell is that?” he asked, pointing at the vault door. 

“That is something that’s keeping us from leaving,” a second bespectacled man explained, “I’m not sure how it exactly works, but I’m assuming that someone has the code that’ll open it.” He, like Sebastian, had black hair. However, it was much more mature in terms of style. In fact, for being the Ultimate Butler, Sebastian had not worn a butler’s uniform whatsoever, donning a simple white button-up and black velvet blazer. His shirt had been unbuttoned enough to see his neck, collarbone, and the start of his chest. In contrast, the man before Ciel looked similar to his therapist; he was a tall, somewhat sturdy man wearing a thin turtleneck, pants, and a jacket that matched. Not to mention that even the man’s shoes looked well-crafted, similar to Ciel’s own shoes. 

“I see,” Ciel said. His eyes wandered, unable to see Sebastian and the man look at one another; red eyes met golden eyes. 

“Oh! Ciel!! There you are!” Lizzy. Ciel sighed and let her approach him. She pulled him in for a tight hug, one that made him want to shiver and pull away. Yet, he did not. Even as she pressed against his chest, he managed to be gentlemanly. 

“It’s nice to meet you here,” Ciel said to her, holding onto her even as she pulled away. Once she had pulled far away enough, he let go of her shoulders. She definitely looked adorable, her pink lolita dress standing out from the other adults’ serious-seeming styles. 

“Aww, you look adorable in this sixties look!” she teased him, pinching his cheek. Ciel took it. He knew how much of a brat he was as a kid, so he adjusted his attitude accordingly. He was surprised to see that he had a couple of inches on her, though. Everyone expected him to be tall when he grew up, but he was now 23 and only 5’6”. Luckily, the lifts in his shoes made him seem 5’9”. 

“But seriously, you do!” she said with a genuine smile. 

“Thank you,” he replied. His eyes wandered, looking at the others. He really wanted to introduce himself to them, not just talk to his cousin. 

“Do you know why we’re here?” Lizzy asked him suddenly. 

“Ah-,” he stuttered, off-guard, “No, I don’t. Does anyone?” Lizzy shook her head. That’s when someone wrapped his arms around Lizzy. 

_ Oh, god _ , Ciel thought,  _ Do NOT let this be who I think it is. _

Of course, it was exactly who Ciel thought it was. His rival from his graduating class, Earl Alois Trancy. Apparently, Alois’ skill was Ultimate Butterfly, which made zero sense to Ciel. Even in the present, he had no clue what it really meant. Well, he did - Alois could turn anything bad that happened into something good - but it sounded like bullshit to him. Ciel was the Ultimate Watchdog, he worked for the Queen of England for Christ’s Sake! This butterfly baloney was nothing but that. Alois was just here because of his late daddy’s money. 

“Hey, you two!” Alois said, a grin on his face. His icy blue eyes stared directly at Ciel, “Glad to see that you’re finally here. With us. In the present.” 

“Will you let that go?” Ciel huffed. Lizzy laughed in order to catch them off-guard. 

“It’s fine that you passed out, Ciel, really-” 

“We’re not talking about that,” both Alois and Ciel replied. Lizzy didn’t frown, but her smile faltered. She laughed again. 

“I’m gonna talk to Sieglinde!” Lizzy said with a small wave, weaseling her way out of Alois’ arms to talk to another girl. Ciel stared at Sieglinde. She was beautiful. 

Well, that was one of many ways he could describe her. She was cute, intelligent-looking, and most certainly his type. He knew that the Ultimate Scientist graduated a few years after him, making her 20. Alois suddenly blocked his view. 

“So. What have you been up to, pissbaby?” he asked, a devilish smirk on his face. 

“Excuse me?” Ciel asked. Alois laughed that cruel laugh of his. 

“I am genuinely curious, though. Have you been busy playing fetch with the Queen?” 

“I-” Alois laughed once more. 

“I’m kidding. You know, maybe we should let by-gones be by-gones. Even though you totally ruined my social life for a month, you flunked both of us on a simple project by fucking it up in ways I even couldn’t, you tried to stop me from dating Lizzy even though I have no interest in her, and did I mention that you ruined my social life for over a month?” Ciel’s eye just narrowed, his fingers gently fiddling with his eyepatch. He said nothing in response.

“Not even a sorry?” Alois asked, a bit smug. 

“Alois-” 

“Naaahhh. You can apologize later. I just heard someone say that they heard a TV turn on,” Alois said, looking at whoever said it. Ciel did the same. 

_ Prince Soma?! _ Ciel thought, wishing to bow right before him in that very moment,  _ Soma Asman Kadar, the Ultimate Prince? He noticed the TV?  _

As the group of 16 alumni stared at a large TV, a feed appeared. A half-white, half-black teddy bear was on screen and… talking? Ciel noticed how one side looked happy while the other looked angry or even… evil. 

“Good morning, students! Er… alumni! Past students of Hope’s Peak Academy! It’s nice to see your faces, both young and old. This is your headmaster Monokuma speaking - yes, the new Headmaster - and I’m going to tell you all why you’re here!” it said. Ciel tilted his head to the side, but his eyes wandered and landed on Sieglinde as the bear continued. 

“He’s adorable!” Lizzy cooed in a whisper. 

“However, we’ll discuss this in the gym! Everyone, head that way! Toodles!” The bear laughed and the feed stopped. Everyone murmured with confusion except for Ciel and Sieglinde. The two locked eyes, but a tall, buff man escorted her to the gym. Most headed to the gym with little hesitation, but a few lingered. Ciel was one of the few. 

“Honestly, what kind of meeting requires us to talk in the gym of all places?” A loud voice asked. Ciel glanced over at the owner of the voice, even as Alois of all people started dragging him to the gym. The voice belonged to a young man - slightly older than Ciel - with bleach blond hair that almost looked yellow, blocky glasses framing his face. He had similar eyes to the Ultimate Manager. A woman tapped his shoulder gently and pulled him along. 

“Let’s just do what the bear says,” she said, pushing her long red hair out of her face, “...I can’t believe I just said that, but you know what I mean.” 

“Yeah, yeah, I gotcha,” he replied as they followed behind Ciel and Alois. 

Once the whole group was there, they all saw a podium on a stage. The gymnasium gave Ciel flashbacks to noisy assemblies that forced him to never attend them again. 

Suddenly, Monokuma popped up from the podium. 

“Hello, students!” he said, in that cheerful mascot-like voice of his. Ciel cringed, wishing he’d shut up. 

“Awww, he’s even cuter in person!” Lizzy cooed. 

“I am not cute!” he protested. 

“You kind of are, though,” the loud man from earlier said. Monokuma growled. 

“The next person to call me cute is getting punished!” he threatened. Only some people seemed shocked that he’d threaten violence. Ciel was not one of those people. Part of his ultimate skill meant dealing with criminals, and that meant dealing with violent people. That was a light threat, if anything. 

“Now then, let me put this bluntly,” Monokuma said, “You’ve all graduated from Hope's Peak Academy, and maybe you’ve even graduated from college, but this is a new, third opportunity to graduate from! It’ll look great on your resumes!” 

“So what is this program, then?” the Ultimate Manager asked. 

“... This is a killing game!” Monokuma laughed with sick glee. No one said a word, just feelings of shock bouncing around the room. 

“Let me explain the rules-” 

“Is this voluntary?” the loud man asked, “I’m currently not using my resume, so-” 

“This is mandatory!” Monokuma raised his voice, “Shut up and let me get on with it!” No one said anything, secretly panicking. Ciel looked at the ground. These people were going to eat one another alive, he was sure of it. But would he participate? 

“In order to graduate, you must kill someone from this group and become a blackened. After three or more people discover a body, you’ll have time to investigate before the class trial begins! If you successfully figure out who the blackened is, then only the blackened will be punished. If you do not figure out who the blackened is or you guess wrong, then everyone but the blackened will be punished. The blackened will then graduate, thereby completing the killing game! There are more rules, but those are in your student e-handbooks. You still have those, right?” Before anyone could reply, Monokuma explained that they all have brand new handbooks and they were set before the stage on a table hidden under a white tablecloth. 

“Does anyone want me to go over the rules?” Monokuma asked. 

“Yes,” the Ultimate Manager was quick to answer, and he looked dead serious. Ciel’s face scrunched up once more. This was all too wild, even for the Watchdog. 

“Rule number one: Students may reside only within the school. Leaving campus is an unacceptable use of time!” Monokuma exclaimed. Ciel faded in and out of listening to the rules. After all, they were all in the e-handbooks, right? 

“Rule number three: Sleeping anywhere other than the dormitory will be seen as sleeping in class and punished accordingly.” 

“Rule number five: Violence against headmaster Monokuma is strictly prohibited, as is destruction of surveillance cameras.” 

“Rule number ten: Lending your e-Handbook to another student is strictly prohibited.” 

“And finally, the last rule… Additional rules may be added per the headmaster’s discretion-” Monokuma was about to finish, but someone yawned. 

“HEY! Who yawned?” Monokuma yelled. 

“Oh. Apologies,” the man who looked like Ciel’s therapist said. Monokuma growled, but said nothing about it. 

“Well now! Soon, I’ll give you all something to really murder for, but go ahead and mingle! Goodbye for now!” With another laugh, Monokuma disappeared without a trace. Everyone looked at each other. 

“Did we just get permission to kill each other?” the woman with red hair said with a wide smile. 

“We can only kill two people maximum,” the Ultimate Manager replied, sighing, “Honestly, Sutcliff, were you even listening?” 

“I think you were the only one actually listening,” Ciel’s therapist’s look-a-like said, a smirk on his face. This did not make the Ultimate Manager happy whatsoever. 

“Well, if you get stuck in the dining hall, then you’ll wish that you had listened!” he said, pointing a finger at him. The other man just sighed. 

“It’s in the handbook,” he said with a shrug, “Honestly, the fact that you even made him go through it is just inconvenient for us.” Before the Ultimate Manager could put out a rebuttal, someone stepped between the two. He had a commanding look in terms of appearance - he was tall, muscular, had bandages wrapped around his right hand and forearm - yet a kind face. He placed his hands on their shoulders. 

“Friends! Let’s not fight. Right now we have to at least introduce ourselves to each other,” he said. 

The Ultimate Manager sighed, “We are not-” 

“Sure, sounds good. I’ll start,” the other man said with a flat face. The kind man nodded and let go of both of their shoulders. 

“My name is Claude Faustus, and I am the Ultimate Filmmaker,” the man with golden eyes said. 

“Oh! Yes, I recognize your name,” the kind man said with a smile, “Everyone, you may just call me Agni, for I am the Ultimate Bodyguard to the Ultimate Prince!” He gestured to Prince Soma, who waved at everyone with a smile. Claude then glanced at the Ultimate Manager with a smile of his own, one that dripped of smugness. 

“... I am William T. Spears. Ultimate Manager,” he said, stiffly. Claude looked pleased. One by one, everyone introduced themselves. 

Grell Sutcliff, the Ultimate Actress. 

Ronald Knox, the Ultimate Socialite. 

“Undertaker”, the Ultimate… Undertaker. 

Hannah Annafellows, the Ultimate Gardener. 

Nina Hopkins, the Ultimate Fashion Designer. 

“Mey-Rin”, the Ultimate Sniper. 

Wolfram Gelzer, the Ultimate Lieutenant.

And then there was Lizzy. Elizabeth Midford, the Ultimate Fencer. 

Once introductions ceased, the group formed smaller groups. Ciel took it upon himself to at least get to know all of them at least a little bit. Currently, he was in a group with Sebastian and Lizzy. 

“This is all so scary!” Lizzy confessed in a whisper. 

“I understand, but you must keep a brave face on, lest you want to become a victim,” Sebastian teased. 

“Sebastian!” Ciel raised his voice at him. He hadn’t done that in a long while. Sebastian looked at him, then smiled. 

“I apologize. I only meant to make the mood lighter,” Seb replied. 

“Well, you’re scaring her,” Ciel said. Lizzy nodded. 

“But it’s okay! I only know that you’re joking! After all, no one here could kill, right?” she asked. Seb and Ciel looked at one another. There were many, many people that had the capacity to kill. But what could push them to kill? Even with the opportunity, they would need a motive, no? That’s how Ciel always figured out who committed crimes and who didn’t; most didn’t have a motive that fit. That’s how the Watchdog kept the criminal underworld in check. 

If there’s no motive, then only someone truly fucked up would become a blackened. How far would these people go if they did have one, though? 

  
  



	2. Double-Edged Sword: Daily Life, Morning 1

Monokuma Lesson #2: Keep your friends close and your enemies closer! 

Ciel decided to talk to Sieglinde and Wolfram. They had met once before during a vacation in Germany. Sieglinde had just graduated from Hope’s Peak and the two spent plenty of time discussing the school and their skills. A year after they met, the Tragedy of Hope’s Peak occurred. At first, no one knew a thing about it, but then… more and more came out, and the protests began. Then…

_And then what happened, Ciel?_

“Hello!” Sieglinde greeted him, “It’s nice to see you again.” 

“Nice to see you again, too,” he said. Wolfram and Ciel shook hands. Ciel’s hand seemed so delicate in Wolfram’s hand, but Ciel had a firmer grip. 

“How have you been?” Wolfram asked. 

“Under any other circumstances, I would say that I’ve been good, but considering what we just got ourselves into…,” Ciel drifted off. 

“Of course. No worries. But I’m glad that you were doing good,” Wolfram replied, then sighed, holding his head, “Honestly, this is all just too extreme. I expected this to be business as usual, not some sick, twisted game.” 

“Well, we have to just make the most of it and figure out how to escape,” Sieglinde said. 

“You’re already planning an escape?” Ciel asked. Of course she was. He didn’t expect anything less from the Ultimate Scientist, the one who crafted a deadly type of mustard gas when she was 12 years old, one that was much more powerful than normal mustard gas, enough to kill many, many soldiers. She had done it without realizing who she was working for, and made a permanent Heel-Face turn. 

“Well, we all have to work together in order to actually execute it, but I certainly have many ideas. We have to see what areas are open and which aren’t.” Ciel nodded along with what she was saying. 

“Agreed. After that, we should all hold a meeting,” Ciel replied. After some time talking, the people Alois were talking to caught his eye. What were the Ultimate Gardener and the Ultimate Filmmaker doing together? They stood very close to one another, but neither latched onto the other. 

“Well??” Alois asked expectantly, hands on his hips. The two older adults stared at him, not knowing what to say to him. 

“What are you making a fuss about?” Ciel asked Alois as he approached him. Alois perked up and smiled at him.

“Oh, nothing! I’m just trying to plan out a murder!” Alois replied. 

“Ah-” 

“Kidding! You take everything so seriously,” Alois laughed. Suddenly, his face darkened. 

“You still owe me an apology, though.” Ciel grew nervous and glanced at Hannah and Claude. 

“Oh. Uh,” he said as he looked back at Alois, “I apologize for making you go through what seems like Hell. What I did was wrong. I would like if we, as adults, moved on from the past and focused on the present, especially when one of us could kill at any moment.” 

“...Mmmmmm…. Okay!” Alois said with a smile, “Apology accepted.” From the corner of his eye, Ciel saw Claude roll his eyes. Hannah finally grabbed Claude’s arm and he didn’t push her off. 

“I want to leave,” Hannah whispered to him while still being loud enough for Ciel and Alois to hear, “We should go to our rooms or-” 

“You can fuck later,” Alois said in a harsh voice, “Whatever you two do, just do it away from me!” Ciel’s face instinctively scrunched up. Alois was still the same as he was in high school. How terrible for him. Hannah and Claude said nothing to him, even as Alois walked off to talk to Lizzy. He just left Ciel hanging dry. 

“Honestly, his… emotions have been more volatile as of late,” Claude sighed, “We came into contact with him and he latched onto us. He just treats Hannah terribly.” 

“...Good to note,” Ciel said with a nod. 

“Are you accusing him of potentially being a murderer?” Hannah suddenly asked, defensive. 

“What? No!” Ciel said, putting his hands up defensively, “I didn’t… I wasn’t-” 

Claude pushed his glasses up with his left hand, “I wasn’t going to say this, but Hannah is unfortunately attached to him, too.” 

“Unfortunately? Alois is wonderful! I’m grateful that I met him. He’s just been through so much in life. If he’s acting rude, his feelings were clearly hurt. Someone hurt his feelings, so he wants others to feel how he’s been treated.” 

“That’s not productive in the slightest bit,” Claude sighed. Ciel laughed softly.

“You sound like my therapist,” Ciel said, deciding to not weird Claude out with the physical similarities as well. Claude seemed pleased with this.

“... Well, I know quite a bit about mental health and illness,” Claude said with a nod, “It’s a topic I’ve used many times in movies. I also have… personal experience with the topic.” He spoke as if to dance around the words he wanted to say. 

“But anyways,” he said, quickly changing the subject. 

“I’m not bothered by what Alois does. He has a reason for being that way. He can be nice!” Hannah spoke quickly, as if this was her one opportunity to speak her mind. 

“Keywords: can be,” Ciel said snarkily. Claude laughed, which only made Hannah tense up. 

“Oh, absolutely,” he said, smiling. Hannah looked disturbed. What an odd thing to be disturbed about. Ciel didn’t see anything wrong with Claude smiling, but maybe it was just odd behavior for him. Maybe he just never smiled or laughed. The thought of a man who never smiled or laughed reminded Ciel of the Ultimate Manager. But the Ultimate Filmmaker seemed to have many things to smile about. For example, he seemed very close with a woman with all the right assets; she was skilled, she seemed understanding - if not a pushover - and kind, and she seemed very attached to him. She was certainly pretty, too. Hannah was pretty in a mature way, as a woman her age would be expected to look. Her long pastel periwinkle hair was put into a braid and hung down her back and over a white shawl. The shawl was stylish, almost glamorous. The clothes that actually covered her was just a purple sleeveless turtleneck dress. 

Eventually, Ciel made his way over to Agni and Soma, who he’d never met until this point. According to Ciel, Soma was just a regal yet friendly prince, while Agni was his loyal bodyguard and even butler. Either way, both of them reflected those personalities in the same gym that Ciel stood in. 

“It’s so nice to meet you, Queen’s Watchdog!” Soma said with a handshake even firmer than Ciel’s. Startled, Ciel managed to speak as normal. 

“I’ve heard so much about you,” Soma said as he was fangasming over Ciel Phantomhive of all people. Soma looked absolutely regal and elegant despite his energetic personality. 

“And I’ve heard much about you,” Ciel replied, flattered yet unnerved. 

“Yes, we are both grateful to have met you at last. However, we both wish that we didn’t have to meet under these circumstances,” Agni said. 

“Of course. I believe that we’ll take down whoever put this sick game together.” 

“Yes! I was thinking about how you out of all of us here would be able to get us out of this mess,” Soma said. Ciel realized that Soma was holding onto his arm, but he didn’t feel compelled to back away. 

“It’s so strange, though,” Soma said, “Why were all of us chosen specifically? There were so many other Ultimates that graduated, and yet… here we are, forced into a killing game!” 

“Well… my current hypothesis is that we’re all connected in some way. After all, I work with Sebastian, Elizabeth is my cousin, Sieglinde and I worked together before, and Alois is my rival. Alois knows other people, and the others know the other people here.” 

“So maybe the mastermind of this killing game is focused on you!” Soma suggested. 

“I- I didn’t mean it like that!” 

“Oh! I’m so sorry!”

“No. It’s fine. It is something to consider, the possibility that this supposed mastermind wants something from a few of us at most and dragged the rest into it.” 

“Oh! I didn’t mean that!” Soma said. 

“Wh-” 

“I meant that you’re the protagonist of this game! You have those vibes, you know. Someone who could potentially save us all from something awful. You’re a hero, after all!” 

“What?!” Ciel asked. _Was this guy an idiot??_ Ciel was an anti-hero at best.

“What are you even talking about?” Ciel asked, irritance building up. 

“I’m saying that you’d make a good main character,” Soma said with a wink. Before Ciel could explode, a somewhat familiar voice joined them. 

“Princey has a point, you know,” he said. Ciel looked at the owner and found “Undertaker”. Everyone only knew him as Undertaker, for he was the Ultimate Undertaker. He was a man shrouded with mystery to the point of covering his eyes often with large sunglasses. As a Hope’s Peak student, he would just cover his face with his hair and hat. 

“You could very well be a protagonist. You just have to be in the right story. Not all protagonists are exemplars of morality, you know,” he spoke as if he was keeping in a giggle. Ciel wished that he could yell at the man, but he found himself quickly calming down. 

“I see your point. I’ll take what you both said into consideration,” he said, his face and voice stoic. Undertaker laughed at him. 

_What odd men_ , Ciel thought as he said goodbye to them. As he was walking away, he stared at Undertaker, which only forced him to bump into two women. 

“Aww, look at you!” Nina cooed, “You definitely look so stylish. It’s good that you still look so boyish. Otherwise, I’d had to stop using you as inspiration.” 

“Ah- The Ultimate Fashion Designer using me as inspiration?” Ciel asked. 

“Well, your stature, at least,” Nian replied, looking away. 

“Pardon?!” 

“You just have a perfect body to model my clothes! After all this is over, we have to get you to try some of my new concepts! We just have to!” Nina exclaimed. Ciel sighed and glanced at Mey-Rin. She seemed familiar, but he discarded that feeling. Without the glasses that were atop her head, her face just seemed so unfamiliar in comparison with her name and everything else about her. 

“And what about me?” Grell approached them, Ronald and Will following close behind. Nina jumped slightly. 

“Oh! You, too, Miss Sutcliff!” Nina said with a confident smile. 

“I sure hope so,” Grell replied, twirling some hair around her finger. 

“...Nice shirt,” Ciel said to her, genuinely appreciating it despite how over-the-top it was. The shirt was a white button-down with lots of ruffles and black stripes. The buttons looked more like jewels. 

“Thank you!” Grell replied, then realized who he was, “Wait… You’re with Sebastian, right?” 

“What?” Ciel asked, “We’ve worked together, but-” 

“Oh, here we go,” Ronald murmured, rubbing the back of his neck. 

“Well! Listen here, boy!” Grell said loudly, “If you lay a hand on Sebastian, you’ll surely regret it!” 

“What?? Why would I do that? I would never!” Ciel said, sounding as disgusted as he could. He was actually grossed out by the thought of being intimate with Sebastian - the man was his tutor at one point AND they met when he was sixteen - but he had to make sure Grell understood that. None of this nonsense would happen again if Ciel had it his way. 

“And that’s how it should be,” Grell said before leaving to possibly look for Sebastian. 

“She’s been tense since that bear left,” Ronald admitted. 

“I think we’re all a bit tense since that bear left,” Ciel said. 

“He has a name. It’s Monokuma. Learn it,” Will said. Ronald rolled his eyes. 

“Sooo what are you doing here?” Ronald asked, “Well… I mean, did your invite have any actual information about this killing game stuff?” Ciel shook his head. 

“Mine didn’t, either,” Will said as he pulled out his invitation to Hope’s Peak. It looked as if it had just been printed. 

“Whaat, you actually kept yours?” Ronald asked, cocking a brow. 

“Yes. I wanted to have it in case we needed to prove that we were invited.” 

“I brought mine, too,” Ciel said.

“...Great minds think alike,” Will said in a rather flat tone before leaving. Ronald and Ciel stared at him, confused. 

“... I think that was a compliment?” Ronald asked aloud. 

“Allegedly,” Ciel said, “So you’re the Ultimate Socialite? What does that mean?” 

“You’re smart, aren’t you?” Ronald teased, then said, “I’m good at being social. Parties, networking, staying in touch with all kinds of people, building connections… I do it all.” 

“I see,” Ciel said with a nod, “That’s definitely useful. You’re diplomatic, then?” 

“Oh, uh… Yeah! Totally am,” Ronald said, rubbing the back of his neck, “I can distract people from problems and make them relax, if that’s what you mean.” Ciel nodded, but that wasn’t at all what he meant. As everyone left the gym to explore, Ciel stayed and sat down on a rolled-up foam mat. He waited for Sebastian to pass by. 

“Oh. I was looking for you,” the Ultimate Butler said, “I thought you had wandered off by yourself.” 

“Absolutely not. I have information,” Ciel said as he got off the mat, “Sieglinde is developing many ways to escape, while Soma, Agni, and I agreed that I will figure out who this… mastermind… is in due time.” 

“And the others?” Sebastian asked, looking down upon him. Ciel shook his head.

“They seem terrified or complacent,” he replied. 

“Well. Let’s explore then, shall we?” Sebastian said with a smile. 

Monokuma Lesson #3: A black and white mentality is not 

always the best way to go about a killing game! 


	3. Double-Edged Sword: Daily Life, Afternoon 1

Sebastian glanced down at the map on the e-Handbook. His eyes narrowed.

“Everything is open,” he said, “How odd.” 

“Odd? What’s odd about it?” Ciel asked. 

“Well… We’re not students, so why would we have access to all of these locations?” 

“If it’s a killing game, then all areas should be opened up. That could give contestants better ways of murdering one another, in which case-” Ciel stopped himself. Sebastian laughed softly as Ciel’s cheeks flushed. 

“There’s nothing to be ashamed of. You’re just seeing things from the mastermind’s point-of-view,” Sebastian said. 

“...Real quick, Sebastian,” Ciel said. 

“Hm?” 

“Do you think I’m the mastermind?” 

“No. Do you think I’m the mastermind?” 

“What? No, Sebastian…,” Ciel sighed and held his head, “Well, at least we’re in agreement that it’s not either of us.” 

“Precisely. So, what should we look at first?” Sebastian asked, smiling. 

“... How about the Bio Lab?” Ciel suggested. Seb frowned.

“Why don’t we check out the dining hall?” he replied. 

“If you wanted to go there first, you should’ve just said that to begin with.” 

“Of course. Apologies,” Seb said with a nod. The two men headed to the dining hall while Ciel looked through the rules. 

“So this is closed at nighttime,” Ciel said as he walked into the room, Seb holding the door for him. 

“Correct,” Seb replied. At that moment, no one was in the dining hall. It looked completely normal; beige walls, wooden tables with chairs made of plastic and metal, a few corny posters, and these big windows that let a lot of light in. Ciel looked out of them. What had been a sunny day was now gloomy.

“A thunderstorm is approaching,” Sebastian said. Ciel stopped looking out the window and headed to the kitchen. He opened it and jumped. 

“Whoops! Sorry, my bad,” Ronald said, rubbing his neck. He bumped into Ciel on his way out, scaring him. Ciel let out a sigh of relief. 

“It’s fine. I should’ve actually looked before I opened the door,” Ciel said. 

“Nah, you’re fine,” Ronald shrugged, then glanced at Seb, “Soooo-”

“What?” Sebastian asked, sounding annoyed, “If this is about Grell, I don’t want to deal with it.” 

“Well… It’s just that she really likes you,” Ronald said, “Maybe you should just give her a chance!” Sebastian rolled his eyes. 

“Please. Just because she likes me doesn’t mean I have to give her any chance.” 

“Hey, man, if you feel that way, that’s fine,” Ron said as he put his hands out, then slowly put them back down, “Just keep that same energy whenever she talks to you. Don’t do something that’ll hurt her.” 

“Excuse me?” Seb asked. 

“Can’t you hear?” Ron asked, suddenly growing hostile, “I said… Don’t do something that’ll hurt her. If I have to pick up the pieces because you and… someone else… mess with her and leave her high and dry, then you’ll have to pay.” 

“Is that a threat?” Seb asked smugly. 

“It’s not a threat of murder,” Ron said, calming down, “I’m just letting you know. So. We cool?”

“...We’re cool,” Sebastian replied. Ron nodded and made his way out of the kitchen. 

“Huh. Even someone as level-headed as him seems affected,” Seb murmured. 

“What?” Ciel asked. 

“He must just be stressed,” Seb said, “We’re all a bit stressed, aren’t we?” Ciel nodded. The dynamic duo looked through the kitchen. 

After some time, a voice spoke to them, “Quite a nice kitchen for a school, isn’t it?” Ciel jumped, even gasped. Seb seemed unimpressed. Ciel looked around and saw Claude looking through the kitchen with them. 

“Sorry for scaring you,” Claude said in a soft voice. 

“Don’t worry,” Ciel said, “I was just focused. But why do you say that?” 

“Because it’s had some updates. I remember vaguely seeing this version of the kitchen while tutoring you,” Seb said. Claude nodded along. 

“Indeed. The old kitchen wasn’t as nice as this,” said Claude. Ciel nodded and decided to investigate elsewhere. He believed that Sebastian was right behind him, but he was held back by Claude. 

Ciel glanced at his e-handbook, trying to decide on a location to look into while walking down the hall. Someone tapped his shoulder as they walked next to him. He glanced over at Sieglinde and his face brightened. 

“You should pay attention while you’re walking,” she said. 

“Oh. Yes, I’m sorry,” he replied as he put his e-handbook away. The two walked to the rec room. The whole time, Wolfram followed right behind them. That was when Ciel realized that Sebastian was not even nearby. 

“Uh… Damn it,” he sighed, “I wish we had our cell phones. I have no idea where Sebastian is.” 

“You’ll run into him again,” Wolfram assured him. The three walked into the rec room. Again, no one was in this room. Sieglinde took the opportunity to sit down and look through the available magazines. Wolfram studied the pool table while Ciel looked at these little statues in bottles atop a jukebox. He took note of how each Monokuma held a chess piece. Someone tried to walk into the rec room, but perhaps they saw them in there already and didn’t want to be in there with anyone else. Ciel and Sieglinde shrugged this off, but Wolfram was on edge. His hands became fists as he watched the door, silently daring that person to try and come in again. Sieglinde showed Ciel the cover of a magazine, which made his eyes widen with fear. He clutched onto the jukebox. 

“Who is that?” Ciel asked. 

“Uhh… the cover says Junko Enoshima,” Sieglinde said, a concerned look on her face, “Why?” Ciel said nothing. He only gulped and felt his chest grow tight. 

“Wolfram?” Sieglinde called out. Wolfram was already walking over to them as Ciel tried to breathe. He made Ciel sit down and Sieglinde tried to remove the magazines. 

“Breathe,” Wolfram said in a soft voice, “You’re going to be okay. Focus on taking deep breaths.” Ciel listened to him and managed a nod. After a few minutes, Ciel felt normal again. 

“I’m so sorry,” Ciel said, embarrassed that they witnessed a panic attack. 

“What?? No, don’t apologize!” Sieglinde said, angry that he’d even apologize for something like that. Ciel said nothing in response. 

“...I don’t know why I reacted like that,” Ciel said at last. 

“It’s important to note, that’s for sure,” Wolfram said. Ciel nodded in agreement. Wolfram and Sieglinde decided to stay in the rec room while Ciel ventured out to find Sebastian. Unable to find him after some time, he settled in his dorm room before going back out to grab some dinner. That was when he found Lizzy in the dining hall. Her face perked up immediately; she had been eating alone. As Ciel settled in a chair across from her, he looked at her face with a smile. 

“So what did you find?” She asked him. 

“Oh. Uh,” his smile faltered, “To be honest, I spent a lot of time looking for Sebastian. I did take some notes, though. For example, the garden-” 

“-has a big plant that looks like one of those monster-sized flowers in the Botanical Gardens?” Lizzy asked. Ciel nodded. 

“Precisely,” he said. That’s when Monokuma popped up from under the table they were eating at. Ciel jumped, almost spilling his drink. 

“That’s a man-eating plant!” He said with a laugh, “The Ultimate Gardener raised it herself. That’s  _ the _ Ultimate Gardener that’s with us.”

“Maybe we should ask her about it, then!” Lizzy said with a smile. 

“What would you ask?” Monokuma replied, sounding displeased. 

“Uhh…” 

“How she made it, for one,” Ciel said, “Whether or not it’s a hybrid, if she’s made various plants like it-”

“You cannot make a plant!” Monokuma said, “You have to raise it, you have to nurture it!” 

“It’s the same thing,” Ciel said, “Now, if you could leave us be, that’d be great, Mr. Mastermind.” Monokuma laughed, but quickly left without a trace. 

“He’s so odd,” Lizzy said. 

“It’s a robot, most likely,” Ciel said, “One that’s being controlled.” Lizzy’s face grew worried. 

“Could this… mastermind be one of us?” Lizzy asked. 

“DING DING DING!” Monokuma shouted, scaring both of them. 

“I told you to leave!” Ciel said. 

“Well, excuuuuse me! I’m just letting you know that it only can be someone in the group.” 

“Great. Do you have anything else to say?” Ciel asked, unamused. Lizzy looked like she was about to cry. 

“Hmmm… Nope! Goodbye for realsies!” With another laugh, Monokua was gone. 

“Who talks like that?” Ciel mused to himself. Lizzy said nothing, playing with her food. In fact, she said nothing during the rest of dinner, but neither did Ciel. He was lost in his own world, trying to figure out who could be controlling Monokuma. That is, of course, if Monokuma was being controlled. 

“So that leaves… quite a few people, actually,” Ciel said to himself. Lizzy stood up and threw her trash away. As she passed Ciel, she murmured about how the dining hall would close soon. 

“Oh. Thank you,” Ciel said as he stood up. 

Once Ciel walked out of the dining hall, he didn’t think about how Lizzy was in her room alone, how she was sobbing. Well, he couldn’t hear a thing, anyways. From what he remembered, these dorms were soundproof, making them a perfect scene for murder. 

_ I’d appreciate it if we stopped thinking about murder _ , Ciel thought. Before he opened the door to his dorm, Sebastian tapped his shoulder. 

“What were you up to?” Sebastian asked him. 

“What were you up to?” Ciel quickly turned around and spoke in an accusatory tone.

“I had a long talk with Claude, then I… Mm. I talked to Grell,” Sebastian said, “Those two are going to drive me up a wall.” He then laughed softly. 

“I do mean that, though,” he said as he grew serious, “Those two are absolutely… wild.” Ciel nodded. 

“Good to know,” Ciel said, “I’m tired. Let’s talk tomorrow.” 

“Agreed. Good night.” Ciel said it back and they both entered their rooms which were right across from each other. As Ciel closed his door, the monitor in his room turned on. 


	4. Double-Egded Sword: Daily Life, Night 1

“Good evening, students!” Monokuma announced, “It is now nighttime! The dining hall and other restricted areas are now locked. Morning will begin at 7 am!” As quickly as the broadcast started, it had finished. Ciel was too tired to even think about what these supposed restricted areas were. He changed and slipped into bed, quickly falling asleep. 

  
  


Monokuma Lesson #4: Some rules are meant to be broken. 

Unless they’re the Headmaster’s rules, of course. 

  
  


“STUDENTS!” Monokuma shouted from the monitor. This was then followed by a loud clap. Ciel shot up from his bed. He groggily stared at the monitor, trying to fully focus on it. 

“There’s an announcement that needs to be made in the gym. Come quickly, now! You must all be present in order to find out what it is,” he said. The broadcast ended and Ciel quickly changed to look presentable in front of others. 

Once everyone was gathered, Monokuma appeared before them once more. The empty eyes and shallow grin looked menacing at night.

“So sorry to interrupt everyone- JUST KIDDING! I have a special surprise for you all. Before us are envelopes that contain one of your very dark secrets. The hardest part was having to only pick one, though! You are all just great candidates for this killing game! Any student could spread despair like the plague.” No one visibly reacted to what he said, so he continued. 

“So gueeeeessss what? You’ll have to share what’s inside with the rest of the class. Think of it as show and tell!” Monokuma laughed, “However... if one of you kills, then we won’t need to share any silly secrets. Understood?” 

“This is ridiculous,” Ciel said, “I can’t believe you woke us up for this.” 

“You actually fell asleep?” Monokuma asked as he tilted his head, “What a weak little boy you are!” 

“I’m a man!” Ciel shouted. 

“Doesn’t matter. Besides, let’s see how the others view you once you share your secret.” Eyes looked at Ciel for an answer, but they only received the sight of a young man that looked like he would blow a gasket. 

“That’s it! Bye-bye! Can’t wait to report your death!” Monokuma said. He disappeared as quickly as the group grabbed their envelopes. As they all opened their envelopes, a gaggle of expressions formed. Some looked shocked, some looked afraid, but some looked… unimpressed. 

“Huh,” Grell was the first to speak, “It says here that I’m a murderer.” Everyone slowly looked at her. You could cut the tension with a knife and spread it smoothly. Like butter. 

“What?” Claude asked in a soft voice. 

“I said-” 

“We all heard what you said!” Alois shrieked, “So is it true? Are you a murderer?” 

“Well! What does yours say, you little brat?” Grell hissed back. 

“Please don’t speak to him like that,” Hannah said, holding herself as she hid her envelope and secret. Grell said nothing to her, only glaring at Alois. 

“Fighting will get us nowhere,” Claude said, “We need to see if these are all true or not. Then, we can confirm if Grell’s supposed secret is true.” 

“Oh, it’s totally true.” The tension thickened. All eyes were on Grell, who was twirling some hair around her finger. 

“Yeah. See, a while back… I was really into it. Before I was accepted into Hope’s Peak, I made a promise to myself; I told myself that if I didn’t become a star by thirty, I would become a serial killer. Fame can really help a girl, you know.” Ciel glanced at Lizzy, who looked disturbed. There was silence before Undertaker started laughing. 

“Oh! That’s a reference!” he said, “How clever of you!” Grell smiled at him. 

“At least someone can tell when I’m acting.” 

“Well, you’ll have to forgive us for taking that seriously when our lives are on the lines,” Seb spoke with clenched teeth. 

“Oh, Bassy dear, you needn’t worry about me!” Grell said with a grin. 

“So is it true or not?” Claude asked, “That’s all we want to know.” Grell looked at him. 

“You know… Ever since I was little, I had an obsession with true crime and murder-”

“Skip the tragic backstory and tell us the truth,” Will said sternly.

“Okay! I accidentally killed a man,” she confessed, clutching her long red locks, “It happened during a date and I didn’t want to lose my acting career! You think I just have it easy because I’m the Ultimate Actress, don’t you? It’s not all sunshine and lollipops! Sometimes life is grisly and full of despair! You all should know that! I just… I hid the body in a dumpster, it was taken with the trash… no one even thought about the guy after that!” 

“Can we have you executed?” Seb asked. 

“What?!”

“Well, you confessed to murder-”

“If she confessed to murdering one of us, then she could be executed,” Will said with an eye roll, “Let’s move on. My secret is-” 

“Can we really move on from murder?” Nina asked, eyes narrowed. 

“It’s our only choice,” Will shot back, “My secret is… I collect pet rocks. This is true. They’re all named, of course.” 

“Are you kidding?!” Ciel asked aloud. 

“Oh yeah! About that,” Monokuma appeared behind Will, “Will’s the only goody-goody here. He’s also suuuuper boring. No perversion, no juicy secrets… No nothing!” 

“I refuse to believe that,” Claude countered. Monokuma disappeared as Will retorted that claim. 

“Why? Because you’re a pervert? A sexual deviant? There’s no need to project, Faustus.” 

“Where is that coming from?” Hannah asked. 

“I can see what his secret is,” Will replied before gesturing above them, “The lights. They make the paper see-through enough. The text is black, of course. Glancing downward, I can see that it says that Claude films pornography, hour-long movies that enact his twisted desires.” 

“...It doesn’t say anything about my supposed ‘twisted desires’,” Claude replied, arms crossed.

“It’s implied,” Will said with a quick nod. Claude glared at him.

“Face it, Faustus. You’re a sleaze, a pervert, a filthy degenerate,” Will added, a smug, patronizing look on his face. Claude’s face showed no emotion. 

“I’m not boring, though,” he simply replied, “Who’s next?” Will wanted to say more, but Agni took a deep breath and sighed. 

“Before I met Prince Soma, I… was a criminal. I had no faith and was completely lost in my power,” he explained, “Prince Soma saved me from my execution, and I will forever be indebted to him for letting me find my true path in life.” Lizzy bit her lip and looked down at the ground. 

“Well, what about you, Lizzy?” Sebastian asked her, “Surely yours cannot be that bad.” Tears welled up in her eyes. 

“What about you, Michaelis?” Will quickly asked. Ciel glanced at him. Did he notice that Lizzy was crying? Ciel placed an arm around Lizzy, but she didn’t cheer up. 

Seb smiled, “What about me?” 

“Your secret. You’re probably a murderer, just like Grell. It’d be a perfect match, I’m sure.” 

“Aww, trying to push her onto me? I don’t think so,” Seb replied, then sighed, “My secret is phrased in a very negative way, just like Grell’s, so allow me to explain.” Seb cleared his throat. 

“The exact words here used are ‘You are a devil worshiper’. However, I’m just a Satanist, a LaVeyan Satanist. If my religion is some dark secret, then I’m not sure how dark these secrets really are.” Will’s eye twitched as he glared at Seb. Seb looked at Lizzy. 

“Now, we should really get through with this, so-” 

“I can’t do this,” Lizzy murmured. 

“Pardon?” Seb asked. Something in Ciel told him to yell at Sebastian for being antagonistic when Lizzy was very clearly upset, but he ignored it. Was Seb pressing her to purposefully upset her? He surely just believed that she was innocent and pure… right? 

“I can’t do this!” Lizzy shrieked, holding her head with both hands. She pulled away from Ciel and ran out of the gym. 

“Lizzy!” Ciel called out after her. He didn’t follow her, though. Wolfram looked at Seb with a disappointed look, but Seb continued to smile. He almost looked pleased with himself. 

“We should sleep,” Claude said, “We can share more secrets tomorrow. In the meantime, we should-” 

“Set a rule?” Will asked, “I’ve thought of many that should be put in place.” Claude seemed annoyed. 

“Sorry, I’m not the best with strict rules,” Claude replied, “I was going to say that we should stay wary but get some sleep. We’ll figure this out tomorrow.” 

“I don’t know if I can get sleep after hearing how Grell described… you know,” Mey-Rin said. 

“Okay, Miss Ultimate Sniper,” Grell said, hands on her hips. Mey-Rin glanced at the ground, looking even more nervous than before. 

“I’m glad Lizzy ran out before I did,” Alois said, “We should check on her in the morning, though.” 

“Agreed,” Soma said. 

“Are you worried about sharing your secrets?” Sieglinde asked with suspicion. Both Alois and Soma jumped. 

“No!” Soma said, “Well, yes. It’s just embarrassing, you know?” 

“And mine’s very personal,” Alois replied, his face dark. He was staring at Claude, but Ciel was staring at Alois. That certainly rang true with his own secret. 

“Our lives are on the line, though,” Ciel said, “Even though I don’t want to share my secret, I will do so tomorrow. I would recommend that you two do the same.” 

“I will, I will,” Soma agreed, “But tomorrow.” Alois said nothing, only walking away. As they all walked back to their rooms, Ciel felt tired once more. He crashed as soon as he laid down on his bed. Was his door locked? He didn’t even think about that as he drifted into sleep. 


	5. Double Edged Sword: Daily Life, Morning 2

Monokuma Lesson #5: Red-herrings are always such a 

big problem during mysteries. If you pave a path with

concrete evidence, then it should lead you to your destination.

  
  


“Good morning students!” Monokuma exclaimed throughout the school, “It is now seven AM! Everything is unlocked and you can roam freely.” Ciel woke up with a groan, then stretched. He quickly changed before heading out. He then realized that his door was unlocked the whole night. He gasped softly, cursing himself for being a fool. He made sure his door was locked before he looked down the hallway. He realized that Lizzy’s room was next to his, so he knocked on her door. 

No answer. He frowned and knocked once more. 

“I believe she’s still upset from last night,” Sebastian said. Ciel turned around. He looked Sebastian in the eyes and bit his lip.

He then said, “It didn’t help that you tried to make her speak up when she wasn’t ready.” Sebastian said nothing, only staring down at him. 

“...Well?” Ciel asked, “Do you have anything to say for yourself? She’s family, and I’m completely taking her side on this. You don’t do that to someone when they’re clearly upset.” At first, Sebastian said nothing. He then spoke up after seven seconds passed.

“I apolo-” 

“Forget it,” Ciel sighed and looked away from him, “You shouldn’t be apologizing to me. I’m going to grab breakfast.” He then walked away as Sebastian watched. 

“Well. You probably just made Lady Elizabeth feel better,” Sebastian murmured to himself. He glanced at Lizzy’s door before walking to the laundry room. He was faced with Nina and Mey-Rin. Both women looked at him. Seb offered a friendly wave, but Nina only sneered at him. 

“What was with your attitude last night?” Nina asked, “We all could’ve been done with this secret bullshit, but you pushed that girl when she wasn’t ready to speak. The poor thing’s locked herself in her room because of you!” Mey-Rin had reacted differently to Seb’s wave. Her cheeks were flushed while her eyes were staring at the floor. 

“She’s nervous for no reason,” Seb said. 

“Oh, please. You cannot decide what people should be nervous about. She’s probably very sensitive,” Nina replied as she approached him. She then wrapped some measuring tape around his shoulders, pulling him closer, “You should watch your behavior. Someone will perceive your shitty attitude as a threat.” Seb looked completely unamused. 

“First off,” Seb said, putting his hands out, “This is the second threat I’ve received. Second, I’ve not been rude to anyone If anything, others have been rude to me. You should be saying this to Will. And finally… you have mustard on your blouse.” 

“That’s why we’re here in the first place,” Nina replied, rolling her eyes, “What a sick burn, Michaelis. Honestly, I expected more from you. However… you’ve brought up a good point. Perhaps I’ll go scold Will after we wash this blouse.” She let Seb go and he moved to a different corner of the room.

Seb bent down to look through cabinets, “You have fun with that.” Silence followed, but Seb could feel a pair of eyes staring at him. 

“...Are you looking for something?” Mey-Rin asked. 

“Cleaning supplies. Here they are,” Seb said as he stood up straight, soaps and sponges in tow. He also held a few rags, a brush, and even a bucket. 

Seb asked, “Have you seen a mop nearby?” Mey-Rin could only reply by shaking her head. 

“Very well, then.” Sebastian left the laundry room, leaving Mey-Rin to stare at him once more. As he walked to the dining hall, he heard some commotion. He approached the noise. 

“Agni, please just let me in,” Soma said, knocking on the very first door in the hall. Sebastian rushed over to him. 

“What’s wrong?” Seb asked. 

“No,” Agni said, “Do not come in! Do not break down the door.” Seb immediately frowned. 

“Please help me,” Soma said to Seb, “I need to make sure he’s okay.” 

“I’m fine, my prince! Do not break in!” Agni said. Something large slammed against the door, making both men jump. A taller man appeared behind them. 

“What’s happening?” Wolfram asked with a groggy voice. 

“Agni won’t let us in!” Soma said, tears starting to form in the inner corners of his eyes. Wolfram looked at Sebastian, who stepped aside. 

“Can you tell us what’s happening?” Wolfram asked, making his voice sound soft. 

“Uhh… I cannot,” Agni replied. 

“Do you know what’s happening?” 

“Yes, sir. However, I will be able to explain once- AUGH!” Agni gasped and was slammed against the door once more. 

“Agni!” Soma shouted, crying now. 

“Do not worry, Prince Soma,” Agni said, “I’m alri- GUH!” He had sounded like he was putting a lot of effort into speaking. Soma called out to Agni again and again, but he’d only respond to Wolfram. 

“Are you hurt?” Wolfram asked. 

“...Yes. But I’ll be okay. Please tell Soma that-” Agni was cut short by the sound of his own gurgles. Something crashed to the ground. 

“Tell him,” Agni managed to speak, “That it’ll be okay. That I’m… sorry.” Soma tried to open the door once more, but to no avail. 

“Agni!” Soma shouted once more, “Please!” 

“I’m sorry, my prince.” Soma was on the verge of sobbing.

“Who’s in there with you?!” Seb asked. He received no answer. He pressed his ear against the door and listened. No noise. 

“Watch out!” Wolfram suddenly shouted, pulling Seb back with ease. Both arms were tightly wrapped around the butler as the two stared at the door; it had been pierced by a sharp sword, one that would’ve pierced Seb’s eye and brain had Wolfram not pulled him back. The sword had blood on the tip and a bit on the side. Seb’s breath quickened and grew heavy, his heart racing. He tuned out Soma’s sobs as he looked up at Wolfram. They had similar looks on their faces; their brows were creased with worry, their eyes were wet yet neither cried. 

“There, there,” Hannah said as she held Soma, “Don’t look, don’t look.” Wolfram helped Sebastian stand. Hannah looked at the two of them, Soma still sobbing.

“How will we-” Seb started to say, but Hannah put a finger to her lips. Seb looked around, which made Wolfram squint at him. 

“What are you looking for?” He asked. 

“Maybe Monokuma can open the door for us,” Seb murmured. 

“You rang?” Monokuma asked. 

“Oh! We need to get into this room,” Seb pointed at Agni’s door. Monokuma processed everything. 

“...Okay,” He said at last, “I don’t see why not.” There was a pause. 

“There we go!” Monokuma said before immediately leaving. No goodbye or anything. Seb and Wolfram cautiously opened the door, letting light into a dark room. They only managed to open it halfway. Seb sighed before Wolfram looked him over. 

“You seem thin enough to squeeze through,” he said. 

“But-” 

“Just do it,” Wolfram said this as if he was trying to keep calm. Seb shrugged and entered the room by crawling under the sword. Sebastian frowned as he felt his hand touch something wet. He stood up straight and stared at Agni’s corpse even through the darkness. He wanted to scream, but managed to pull the sword out of the door but not completely out of Agni, allowing Wolfram to open the door some more. 

“Careful,” Seb said. Wolfram murmured something to himself about how awful the room looked. It definitely looked like a tornado had come through and strewn everything about. The bed was cut up. As soon as Hannah walked into the room, an announcement played throughout the school. 

“A body has been discovered,” Monokuma chirped, “You will now be able to investigate. After a certain amount of time, the class trial will begin!” Soma started to sob again. 

“Tell the others what happened,” Wolfram said to Hannah and Soma. Hannah nodded and escorted Soma away from the crime scene. Seb managed to turn on a light after a few seconds. The destruction could be seen in its entirety. 

“What hap- oh,” Claude said as he looked into the room, “What even-” 

“The door was locked when this happened,” Sebastian explained, “No one could get in, and Monokuma - maybe even the mastermind - unlocked it for us.” Claude simply nodded. 

“We need to hurry up and start investigating,” Grell said, peering behind Claude. Seb noticed how she was directly looking at Agni’s corpse. 

“I’d appreciate it if you’d stop staring at him. Show some respect,” Sebastian’s voice was thick with irritance. 

“I was only trying to figure out what happened!” Grell said before walking away. Claude stayed, leaning on the door. 

“Claude?” Wolfram asked. 

“Hm?” 

“The door.” 

“Mhm?” 

“Agni’s… Agni was pushed into the door.” 

“... Oh! Shit. Sorry,” Claude said as he adjusted accordingly. Wolfram cocked a brow. Despite the secret that was told and overall behavior, Claude just seemed like an easy-going version of Will. And yet, Will hadn’t sworn at all. It wasn’t shocking to Wolfram per se, but neither seemed like the type to swear so casually, especially when someone’s just died. In fact, he wondered if Sebastian and Claude were even taking this seriously. Both had just messed with the body of a man who seemed kind to everyone, even to someone who killed him. Woflram looked around the room. 

“How could someone get into a locked room?” He asked aloud.

“Well, based off of the school’s floor plan and how locked room mysteries usually work, there’s only a few ways,” Ciel said as he confidently walked into the room. However, as he looked at Agni’s body, his face became downtrodden. 

“What are the ways?” Claude asked, bringing him back to the present. 

“Ah… Well, they could have been hiding in the room and came out during a commotion, they were hiding and waiting for no one to see them, or…,” Ciel paused, “Agni let them in and locked the door.” 

“So no matter what, Agni was trying to take on the assailant by himself,” Claude said. 

“Correct,” Ciel said, “Sebastian. Could you please leave?” 

“Hm?” 

“I’d like to investigate this room by myself. I will ask you for a statement later,” Ciel explained. Sebastian quickly left. The other two men left without a word, and Ciel was left with Agni. 


	6. Double Edged Sword: Deadly Life, Investigation

**INVESTIGATE!**

“Let’s see,” Ciel said as he examined the body. The Monokuma File was slowly making its way to Ciel. No one else was in the room with him now. As he examined the ground, he felt something move past him. However, when he turned to look, he saw nothing. He heard someone walking. Were they walking towards him? 

_ Or were they running away?  _

Back to the body. Agni - fully clothed, his hand even wrapped in bandages- was slashed and stabbed, but there were three main wounds that could’ve been the fatal wound. The first was a deep stab in the abdomen, the second was a slit to the throat, and the third was the stab that went through his body and out the door. Whoever did this must’ve either been strong or knew their way around a sword. 

“Wait,” Ciel murmured to himself as he looked at the sword, “That was… that was in the room right next to the gym!” Indeed, it was. Ciel remembered how ornate that room was. He remembered that there were two swords in there; one was in a glittery sheathe, the other was out in the open for anyone to use. Perhaps the murderer found it as they left the gym without anyone finding out. 

“Oh! Here you are!” Monokuma said from out of nowhere. Ciel jumped back. 

“Here’s the Monokuma File,” he said to him, handing him a black filing folder embossed with red lettering. 

“Thank you,” Ciel replied before immediately looking through it. Monokuma disappeared, leaving it with Ciel. 

**_Monokuma File #1:_ **

_ “The victim was Agni - birth name Arshad Satyendra Iyer - and he passed in his dorm room. The time of death was precisely 7:47 AM. The cause of death was blood loss ultimately quickened with a slit to the throat. Agni was additionally stabbed three times.”  _

Ciel frowned at the Monokuma File. 

“Why does his birth name matter?” He asked aloud. 

“Hmm?” Lizzy asked. 

“Oh! Hello, Lizzy,” he automatically greeted her. He then realized where he was. 

“Don’t look at… any of this,” he said to her, “It is far too gruesome for you to look at.” 

“Well, the others certainly don’t mind describing it in detail to me,” Lizzy said, rubbing her neck. 

“Huh?” Ciel asked. Lizzy nodded. 

“Grell described the gruesome details to me while Hannah was talking to me,” she admitted, “She seemed… almost happy? Proud? I don’t know how to describe the way she was saying it.” Ciel nodded. 

“Good to know,” he said, “I hope you’re feeling better.” 

“I would say that I am, but I just feel so bad for Agni,” her voice drifted upward. She started sniffling. Ciel glanced at her. 

“We don’t deserve to be here!” Lizzy said, “Poor Agni had to die because someone… someone-” 

“I understand, Lizzy, but what you need to do is calm down before the class trial begins. If we can focus on the evidence, we’ll find the murderer.” 

“...You think so?” 

“I know so,” Ciel spoke with more confidence than he felt. Lizzy’s smile looked sad yet understanding. 

He needed more evidence. Suddenly, something made him stop looking at Agni’s body. 

“Lizzy,” he looked at her, “Can we go to your room?”

“Uh… sure!” she said. The two walked to her room. Lizzy hesitantly opened the door for him and they walked in. As he looked around, he noticed that the bed was perfectly made to the point of looking like it had never even been sat on. Everywhere else looked the same, like it had never been used. Lizzy seemed distant from the room, slowly sitting on the bed. 

“Were you in your room all night?” Ciel asked her. Lizzy nodded. 

“Yes, but I couldn’t sleep. Or maybe I drifted in and out of sleep. I don’t remember.” 

“I see,” Ciel replied. He sat next to her and she gave him one of those hugs that he just hated. He had to admit that it was comforting in a time like this. 

“I feel so bad,” she whispered to him. 

“Huh? Don’t,” he said, “The murderer should feel bad, not you.” Lizzy said nothing to that. She slowly pulled away.

“What were you doing if you weren’t sleeping?” he asked her. 

“I was trying to sleep,” she said, “I was in bed.” 

“You were? It’s been immaculately made. I couldn’t even tell that it’s been slept in. Well, used, I suppose.” 

“...Thank you,” she said meekly, “What did you want to talk about?” 

“Right. Forgot about that. I need to create a template of evidence to collect. I need statements from Sebastian, Wolfram, Hannah, and Soma. I need to figure out all possible motives as well.” 

“Sounds like good evidence,” Lizzy replied, “I hope you have enough time to figure it all out. I believe in you, Ciel!” Ciel nodded and stood up. 

“Thank you. That was the exact encouragement that I needed,” he said before leaving her. He wandered around until he found Soma drinking tea with Hannah. 

“Oh, it’s good that you two are together,” Ciel said, “I wanted to get statements from both of you.” Soma nodded, then sniffled. Hannah looked into Ciel’s eye. 

“I’ll let Soma collect his thoughts, so I’ll say what I have to say first,” she said. Ciel nodded. 

“I was in the garden with Alois and Claude. We had eaten breakfast around seven-fifteen, then arrived at the garden at seven-twenty. Alois left around seven-thirty, enraged by something Claude said to him about his secret. I will not reveal the secret now that the rest of us don’t have to. It’s not important, anyways-” 

“Is it that personal?” Ciel asked. 

“Well… yes,” Hannah admitted. 

“I’ll let it pass for now, but if it comes up in the trial, I would advise you to speak up.” Hannah nodded and continued. 

“I followed after Alois, and that’s when I discovered Soma, Sebastian, and Wolfram trying to help Agni. I comforted Soma as the other two men continued what they were doing. I don’t remember the time after that, I apologize.”

“No worries. I know the time of death.” 

“Oh. Yes. Seven-forty-seven, right? I glanced at the Monokuma File before he quickly took it away.” 

“He took it away?” Ciel asked. 

“Yes,” she said, “He mentioned something about how it belonged to you.” Ciel furrowed his brows. 

“I found it odd, too,” she said, “But nothing inconvenient to me. I would watch out for someone that wants to take it away from you rather than someone who just wants to look at it again.” 

“I appreciate the advice.” 

“Okay,” Soma spoke up, “I’m ready to speak: Agni is… was? I...” 

“Please don’t stress yourself out,” Hannah said in a soft voice, “It’s okay.” Soma nodded and continued.

“He’s the closest person in my life. He’s so kind and attentive, so… I just… I love him! He is my best friend, my guardian… It’s so strange to even think about Agni losing a fight, though. He protects me with his strength alone. It comes from his hand. That’s why he keeps it bandaged, so that he doesn’t use it on someone innocent.” 

“What were you doing before the incident?” Ciel asked. 

“I woke up around.. Seven-twenty? I got dressed and left my room. I then knocked on Agni’s door. I struggled finding an outfit to wear. Perhaps if I had just chosen one quickly, I could’ve…” 

“Soma, do not blame yourself,” Hannah said, “It’s not your fault. Please don’t blame yourself.” 

Ciel added, “I agree. The only person to blame is the murderer.” 

“...You’re right!” Soma announced, “Agni would have wanted me to stay strong. I shall avenge his death! He deserves the most honorable funeral, a most honorable goodbye!” Ciel nodded.

“Thank you,” he said, “Do you know where Sebastian and Wolfram are?” 

“They haven’t left each other’s side,” Hannah said, “I think they only trust each other right now. I believe I last saw them in the rec room?” 

“Thank you.” Ciel quickly left for the rec room. When he opened the door, he indeed saw the two men. They were playing pool. Sebastian looked at Ciel. 

“You’re the person we’ve been looking for,” Sebastian said with a smile. 

“Well, I’ve been looking for you two,” he said, returning the smile, “I need your statements.” 

“Perfect,” Wolfram said, letting out a sigh of relief, “It’s honestly been eating me up.” 

“Let’s start with you, then,” said Ciel. The game of pool was paused. 

“Let’s see… I don’t remember any times except for the cause of death. I did, however, talk to Sieglinde after I woke up a little before the announcement. Then I did laundry for myself - I remember that Nina and Mey-Rin were in there with me - because I admittedly spilled some beer on my pants. I had gotten tipsy in this room with Ronald and Claude, for they invited me to join them. I remember Will and that Undertaker fellow being in and out of the room. After the laundry was done, I put my clothes back in my room. I decided I was going to grab something to eat from the dining hall. That was when I stumbled upon Sebastian and Soma. I talked to Agni while trying to keep everyone calm. Agni was pushed into the door, which I found odd; I’m only a bit taller and bulkier than Agni. I don’t think anyone could’ve done something like that to me, even if I was inebriated. The only people that could would probably be Claude, Agni himself, and… Maybe Sebastian? Or Undertaker. But I would think Claude and Agni could push me hard if they put all their strength into it. The fact that Agni was actually pushed so hard into the door is just so odd.” 

“Anything else?” Ciel asked. 

“Sebastian was almost killed,” Wolfram admitted. Seb nodded. 

“What?!” Ciel asked, eyes wide and mouth agape. 

“The sword that went through the door… it almost went into my eye and possibly could have gone into my brain or skull. Wolfram pulled me away.” 

“I don’t know why, but I felt that something bad was going to happen,” he said, “I felt the existing pit in my stomach deepen with each second of silence. I felt that Sebastian was too close, so I pulled him away.” 

“I cannot thank you enough,” Sebastian said. Sebastian then gave his statement: 

“I woke up to the morning announcement. I left my room right as you left yours. As you remember, Ciel, we talked briefly. I then decided to clean up a mess that had been made in the kitchen. Nina and Mey-Rin were in the laundry room when I went in and found cleaning supplies. I was headed to the dining hall when I heard Soma shouting.” 

“Thank you. You don’t have to go on,” Ciel said. 

“You’re sure?” Sebastian asked, “I’m concerned about the locked-room aspect of the mystery.” Ciel nodded in agreement. 

“My theory is that Agni either let them in or they hid all night.” 

“But the rule about not sleeping in the dorms?” Wolfram asked, “Wouldn’t they have broken the rules.” 

“The rule means that any of us can sleep in any dorm,” Will suddenly said, “If the killer were to have hid in Agni’s room and then slept, then they wouldn’t be breaking any rules.”

“Fair. I don’t know,” Seb sighed and held his head, “It’s all just so… confusing.” 

“What’s not clicking?” Will asked harshly, “Agni either let in the killer himself or they waited in his room for the perfect chance to strike.” 

“How did they leave?” Seb asked, “We gathered around the room.” 

“That’s not true. There were only a few people present,” Will retorted, “If more people were there, then they could’ve blended in with the crowd. They had to wait when only one person was there, when everyone was there, or when absolutely no one was there. I believe they left once the coast was clear. They could have escaped the room without anyone noticing after you lot finished gawking at a dead man’s corpse.” 

“Agni was my friend, you asshole!” Seb suddenly raised his voice, “We weren’t gawking at him, we wanted to make sure we knew what happened so we could find the killer!” He spoke with passion and sadness. 

“He was your friend?” Will asked, adjusting his glasses. 

“That’s news to me, too,” Ciel admitted. 

“I… yes, he was my friend! I never talked about it because it was never relevant, but… we were close! He was my only close friend outside of Ciel, and-” 

“I would comment on how pathetic that is, but I don’t want to hear you retort something true,” Will said. Ciel narrowed his eyes at him. Sebastian said nothing to that. 

“It’s best that we don’t talk until the trial,” Wolfram said, standing up. 

“Oh, I am not intimidated by you,” Will said, “I was testing Sebastian.” 

“What a way to test someone,” Wolfram said, shaking his head. 

“Indeed,” Will said with a glint of smugness in his eyes, “Who I’m really intimidated by is that absolute degenerate Claude Faustus. Don’t let him know that, though. He’s just… how do I put this?” 

“He’s weird, we knew that already,” Seb said with an eye roll. 

“Right. Weird is just too simplistic, though. Claude is… Well, he’s not exactly creepy. Undertaker is creepy. Claude is-” 

“Suspicious?” Ciel asked. 

“Precisely,” Will said, “I would watch out for him. He’s going to murder someone. I can tell.” 

“How can you tell who can and can’t murder? Everyone is capable of murder!” Wolfram shouted, “That’s the point of this sadistic game! They want to break people to the point of making them do something they would have never done in the first place!” 

“...You both have points,” Ciel said, “That is most likely the point of this so-called game, but some people are more pre-dispositioned to becoming murderers. That, however, is a rabbit hole that we shouldn’t focus on. What’s important is figuring out who killed Agni so we can save ourselves.”

An announcement started to play and Ciel sighed. If only he had more time to figure out every possible motive. 

“STUDENTS!” Monokuma announced, followed by a loud clap, “The class trial will start soon. Please head to the elevator at once!” 

“Well,” Sebastian said, “It’s best we all head down.” The others agreed. Will let them all out. However, he grabbed Ciel’s shoulder, who gasped softly. 

“Sorry,” Will said and eased his grip, “Make sure you have all the evidence you need. Do you have it?” 

“...Yes,” Ciel said with a nod, “I wanted to figure out everyone’s motives, but-” 

“The secrets,” Will said, “A lot of people didn’t share theirs, yourself included. That should be enough. After all, no one hated Agni.” Ciel thought about it, then agreed. They caught up with Sebastian and Wolfram and continued to make their way to the elevator. 

Once everyone gathered, they all moved down to the courtroom. No one talked to each other and the tension was as thick as it had been in the gym. It was time for a deadly class trial to commence. 

Monokuma Lesson #6: Always make sure to check your work. 


	7. Double-Edged Sword: Deadly Life, Class Trial

Monokuma let out a loud laugh as everyone settled at their podiums. 

“Welcome, welcome! Let’s get started immediately,” Monkuma said, not even mentioning the decor. The room was decorated as if it was inspired by Agni. Soma tried his best not to cry, letting only one lonely tear escape.

Ciel spoke first, “Alright, I’ve been collecting evidence since the second the investigation began, so-”

“Save it,” Will said, “Let the adults speak first and then you’ll have your chance.” 

“Excuse you?” Ciel asked, infuriated. Did their talk from earlier not matter? Did it even matter to begin with?

“It’s nothing personal,” Will replied, “You’re just young.” 

“Well, what evidence do you have?” Ciel asked him, brows furrowed.

“Let’s not go over evidence just yet. Let’s go through exactly what happened.” 

“Agreed, Sebastian said, earning a glare from Ciel, “I found Soma shouting at Agni’s door.” 

“Agni wouldn’t let me into his room, and I was scared,” Soma confirmed, “Sebastian came along, then Wolfram helped us.” 

“I talked to Agni through the door,” Wolfram said, “I bet he was defending himself as he talked. Suddenly, he was slammed against it. He continued talking, but he let out multiple grunts until he suddenly started… gurgling. He managed to talk to Soma and I.” 

Soma announced, “His last words to me were ‘I’m sorry, my prince’.” He teared up after he said that.

“After almost being stabbed, Monokuma opened the door for us. I managed to squeeze through without being cut or stabbed. The sight in that room was just grizzly,” said Seb. 

“So it’s official that Agni was fighting off his attacker, even while having a conversation,” Will said, “Then I believe that Agni was up against someone who had some kind of advantage they used against him.” 

“After all,” Claude added, “The room was an absolute wreck. Agni must have used all of his strength to fight his attacker.” 

“No, that’s wrong!” Ciel retorted. All eyes were on him. 

“Soma, you told me that Agni’s strength comes from his hand, correct? The one that’s bandaged.” 

“Yes!” Soma said, “That’s true!” 

“If Agni used all of his strength, then his bandages would’ve been undone. However, when I examined the body, there wasn’t even a visible attempt to remove the bandages. Therefore, Agni thought he could win against his attacker without even using his powers.” 

“Agni was strong even without his powers, wasn’t he?” Claude asked, brows furrowed. 

“I agree,” Wolfram said with a nod, “I told Ciel that Agni and I are similar in build, so the only people that could push him hard and get an upper hand are myself and… you.” 

“Are you accusing me of this?” Claude asked, “I didn’t do shit!” 

“Excuse me, let’s keep this trial professional,” Will interrupted.

“If you have something that’s actually worthwhile to say, then say it. Otherwise, we don’t need your sidebar commentary!” Claude said, pointing at him. 

“I will not let some gross old man tell me what to do,” William pointed right back at him, “Just keep that kind of language out of this.” 

“I’m only a few years older than you!” Claude retorted, sounding offended, “This is getting out of hand. We need to focus.” 

“As long as we’re focusing on the case, I don’t care what kind of language we use,” Ciel said. 

“Again, stay out of it,” Will replied. 

“I have all the evidence! I need to explain what I found!” 

“Again. Let’s finish explaining what happened.” 

“That’s all that happened,” Seb said. 

“What?!” Will asked, sounding shocked, “That’s it?” 

“Indeed. Did you expect more?” 

“Well, I wasn’t there!” Seb smirked at Will. 

“Precisely,” he said, “Ciel, do you have any clue where the murder weapon came from?” Ciel nodded and began to explain. 

“Yes. It’s one of the two swords from that room next to the gymnasium,” he said, “It’s old and European in origin compared to the other sword.” 

“I do remember there being a sword like that in that room. However, what actually killed Agni?” Will asked. 

“It’s right there in the Monokuma file-” Ciel started to say. 

“What does it say?” Grell quickly asked. Annoyed, Ciel continued. 

“It says that he died from blood loss that was quickened by his slit throat.” 

“Really?” Grell asked, her face looked as if she was stopping herself from smiling. 

“I see. Now all we need to figure out is how the killer actually got into a locked room and who that killer is,” Will said, “The floor is yours, Phantomhive.” With a short nod, Ciel continued the trial. 

“I have gathered many statements,” Ciel said, “And I would first like to start with Lizzy’s.” Lizzy looked down at the ground at the mere mention of her name. 

“Grell Sutcliff, Lizzy said that when you spoke about Agni, you seemed awfully delighted in all of the gory details. Is this true?” Ciel asked. 

“What?! Why does that matter?” 

“Well, where were you when the crime happened?” 

“I was sleeping! Normal people don’t wake up at seven AM!” Grell huffed, “I certainly wouldn’t be up at the crack of dawn murdering someone!” 

“So why speak so disrespectfully?” Seb asked, brows furrowed. 

“I didn’t mean to be! It’s just interesting to me. I’m into true crime.” 

“As someone who’s into true crime, I certainly avoid talking too much about how a victim died,” Claude countered. Grell growled out of frustration. 

“Well, we’re two different people! It’s not important! So many people were sleeping when it happened! If anything, I’d be worried about the people who were up during that time!” 

“It’s not fair at all. Everyone who was up had an alibi,” Seb retorted, “And this isn’t just some distant true crime story, the murder happened today. My friend died today. Soma’s best friend died today. We can’t just talk about this like it happened even months ago.” 

“Hey, hey, hey! Quit being such a crybaby! This is not the time,” Monokuma intervened, “Plus, it’s boring to watch a bunch of crybabies not do anything while a few people do all the work! You all should be more like Grell!” 

“What?! Why call me out specifically?!” Grell asked, “I’m not as cruel as you!” 

“Oh?” Monokuma asked, tilting his head a bit, “You’re a murderer, remember?” Grell clutched her hair. 

“Enough!” She shouted, “Let’s get this trial over with! Based on everything, I have a theory; if Lizzy brought up something as meaningless as that to make me seem suspicious, then maybe she’s the murderer!” 

“Absolutely not!” Ciel said, pounding the podium with his fist, “Lizzy is-” 

“I didn’t mean to point fingers at you,” Lizzy said, “It scared me! I know it was silly to be scared, but-” 

“Stop!” Ciel said, “Grell, by immediately accusing her of the crime, you’re now blaming Lizzy for no reason. That’s insanely hypocritical.” 

“No motive?” Grell asked, placing her hand on her hip, “Does no one remember how Lizzy freaked out over the secrets, the motive Monokuma set up for us?” 

“I think everyone remembers, Sutcliff,” Will replied.

“It’s pretty hard to forget,” Ronald agreed. Lizzy’s face was red with embarrassment. 

“Well! Monokuma said that if one of us became a Blackened, then none of us would have to share our secrets,” Grell said, “So… by default… that’s the killer’s motive!” 

“So it could be any of us who haven’t shared our secrets,” Alois said, “Soma included.” 

“How dare you!” Soma said, starting to cry, “I would never… I would never even hit Agni!”

“Well, I sure hope you wouldn’t,” Alois said with a smirk. 

“Enough,” Claude said, adjusting his glasses, “So who else hasn’t shared their secret?” 

“I haven’t,” Sieglinde spoke up. 

“I haven’t either,” Wolfram said. 

Then Ronald, “I didn’t either.” 

“Alois and I did not,” Hannah said. 

“Certainly not I!” Undertaker added. 

“I didn’t,” Ciel said, ending the list, “I don’t think Nina and Mey-Rin shared their secrets either. Right?” 

“We certainly did not,” Nina said, “By the way, I’d just like to say that I was with Mey-Rin the whole morning and after that.” 

“I can confirm that,” Seb said. 

Wolfram added, “As can I.” 

“Can we confirm that everyone who was up before Agni’s time of death as not suspicious?” Alois asked. 

“It depends on where everyone was,” Ciel said. Alois nodded. 

“I’m fine with that,” he said, “So! Claude, Hannah, and I were in the garden. I assume that Nina, Mey-Rin, Sebastian, Soma, and Wolfram all interacted with each other. Ciel, where were you?” 

“I was in the dining hall,” Ciel said. 

“He’s innocent,” Seb said. 

“How do we all know that, though?” Alois asked with a smirk on his face. 

Ciel froze, “I...” 

“Because I was there!” Undertaker announced.

“Wait… yes, that’s right!” Ciel said, “I saw you in the kitchen.” 

“Correct!” Undertaker with a giggle, “I almost fell asleep in there, but I did see you!” 

“You mean to tell us that you almost broke a rule?!” Will asked, enraged. 

“He’s lucky that he didn’t!” Monokuma shouted, also enraged. Undertaker only laughed. 

“Honestly, you two sound so alike,” Undertaker said.

“I could never be the mastermind,” Will said as he crossed his arms. 

“But that ‘secret’ of yours seemed awfully… tepid considering the ‘dirt’ the mastermind has on everyone else.” 

“HEY, HEY, HEY! It’s not my fault he’s that boring!” Monokuma said, “And me?? Working with him? That’d… actually be a good twist! But nope, sorry! Would never do such a thing.”

“Let’s focus on the case!” Ciel shouted, “So who was in their rooms or asleep during the crime? Because that’s unfortunately not an alibi.” 

“Ugh, really?” Ronald asked, “Fine, fine. I was asleep.” 

“Me,” Sieglinde confessed, “I was about to go to the bio lab, but then the dead body announcement played.” 

Will joined in, “I was in my room reading books I grabbed from the library.” 

“Okay. We also know that Lizzy and Grell were asleep or in their rooms,” Ciel said, “That narrows our suspect list down to five people.”

“And it’s no one you’d expect… except for Grell and maybe even Ronald.” 

“What about you, Will?!” Grell asked, “You sure like dictating this conversation, don’t you?” 

“I shared my secret, remember?” 

“So did I!” 

“So then that narrows it down to Lizzy, Sieglinde, and me,” Ronald said, “Well, two. ‘Cuz I didn’t do it.” 

“Why was Agni attacked?” Hannah asked, “Was it… random?” 

“No? Surely they had a reason for going after him,” Ronald said, lifting his arms up and resting his head on his hands

“That’s not true,” Ciel said, “We have to remember that Agni’s room is the very first room in the hallway and is closest to the school area.”

“Oh, yeah. We can all agree that Agni was pretty nice, too, right?” Ronald asked. Everyone agreed. 

“So now that we’ve deduced down the suspects to Ronald, Lizzy, and Sieglinde, let’s figure out how the killer got into Agni’s room,” Will said, “Based off of what’s been said and general information, none of our suspects are particularly close to Agni. So would he have let them into his room? Most likely not.” 

“I don’t know… Agni’s pretty nice,” Alois said, “I could see him doing it.” 

“No!” Soma shouted, “No, no, no! I woke Agni up.” 

“What?!” Ciel asked, “And you didn’t say that earlier because…?!” 

“It slipped my mind,” Soma said. 

“Oy,” Ronald sighed, rubbing the back of his neck, “Even I would’ve mentioned that.” 

“We should be kind to him. He is going through grief,” Hannah said. 

“Maybe he let someone into his room last night, but I doubt it! And he obviously couldn’t have let someone in when I was the one who woke him up!” 

“How do you know you woke him up?” Claude asked. 

“Because he told me I did! Agni never lies to me!” Soma grit his teeth and clenched his fist. 

“Alright,” Claude said with a nod, “So… perhaps the killer went into his room before he did. They then hid in there, waiting for him to wake up. When he finally did, they attacked him.” 

“That… makes sense! I bet that’s what happened!” 

“...Yes,” Ciel said, “That makes the most sense, out of everything. After all… Maybe someone snuck out as I was investigating. I thought I saw someone or something walk by me, but I thought it was outside the room, not inside the room.” 

“I never walked by,” Sieglinde said, “I made sure to avoid going that way out of respect.” 

“I never saw you,” Ciel said, “Shortly after that, though, Lizzy approached me.” 

“Yes, but I had just left my room, silly!” Lizzy said. 

“I wasn’t applying that you were…,” Ciel paused, then looked at her, “Lizzy?” 

“What?” She asked, “I didn’t… Ciel, you don’t really think I did this!” 

“Then why say something like that?!” He asked her. Lizzy had nothing to say to that.

“Well, this just makes it an impossible case,” Ronald said. 

“You’re kidding,” Claude said, “I know who did it.” Nina and Mey-Rin looked at another and murmured about who they thought it was. Claude looked around with a smirk as others did the same. 

Lizzy suddenly shouted, “Everyone was in their room! Every single person!” 

“No!” Ciel raised his voice. He then bit his lip as everyone looked at him once again. Lizzy looked at him with wide eyes. 

“Lizzy… when I went into your room, it was immaculate. It was as if Sebastian cleaned it. But more importantly… it looked as if no one had used it.”

“Ciel! My stuff was in there,” Lizzy said, tearing up, “Why would you of all people accuse me of this?!” 

“Because you did it,” Grell snarked. 

“I didn’t!” Lizzy said, starting to cry. 

Monokuma started to mock her, “Lizzy Midford took a sword, hid until-” 

“I didn’t do it!” Lizzy screamed, “ I didn’t, I didn’t, I didn’t, I didn’t-” 

“Enough,” Sebastian said, putting his hand out, “Lizzy, tell us the truth.” Lizzy said nothing, only staring down at the podium. 

“...Lizzy?” Ciel asked her. Suddenly, her shoulders started shaking rhythmically. 

“... I didn’t know what to do,” she said. A few gave her some stares that read “What do you mean you didn’t know what to do? You don’t murder people, for one!” 

“I… Let me… Damn it!” She said, holding her head in her hands as she cried, “I don’t get it!” 

“Don’t get what?” Grell asked. 

“How someone could just… hide that they took a human life! How you did something like that!” Lizzy said. 

Grell’s brows knit in confusion and irritation, “Are you-” 

“NO!” Lizzy screamed at her through her sobs, “No… I did it.” Despite how shocked everyone seemed, Ciel remained calm. 

“How did you do it?” Ciel asked. 

“I… okay,” Lizzy took a deep breath, “This is fine. This is what I wanted.” 

“What?!” Soma asked. 

“No, not… I’m so sorry. I should’ve just told him to kill me instead!” she said, “That was my intention originally. I wanted him to kill me. Or anyone, for that matter. Maybe if I actually looked instead of blindly choosing the first room, I would’ve just died. But because I went into Agni’s room without knowing how he’d react, I've made an awful mess.” 

“When did you enter Agni’s room?” Will asked her. 

“After I ran out of the gym,” she said, “I stopped running as I saw the sword. I hesitated, then grabbed it. Through tears, I realized that I wanted to either die with this secret or win. I don’t really want everyone to die, but… I don’t know.” 

“It’s called just wanting to survive,” Claude said with a nod, “Survival instincts kicked in and you decided to make a rash decision. Whether that was a good idea or not… well-” 

“It obviously wasn’t!” Lizzy raised her voice, “I… I… okay. After that, I… I found myself walking into the first room in the hallway. It was unlocked, so lucky me, right? I hid under the bed, trying to sleep while also trying to decide what I’d do. Well, I got scared by the idea of dying, so I decided I’ll defend myself.” 

“And?” Grell asked, both hands on her hips. 

“I didn’t defend myself,” she said, “I was an attacker. I attacked Agni because I was scared and had been carrying the sword all night. I was restless and tired of dealing with these feelings. And yet… Agni was so nice to me. Even when I stabbed him, he was still being nice. He didn’t even say that I killed him. He wanted to protect me, which… I don’t know why he did it. But I? I wanted to do something to actually make myself feel better. I was selfish.” 

“Did killing Agni make you feel better? Did it?!” Soma asked, raising his voice. 

“... I think the answer’s obvious,” she replied, “Of course it didn’t. I only feel worse. I made the wrong choice. I made the wrong choice because I was too scared to admit that I knew that this ‘Ciel’ before us isn’t actually Ciel Phantomhive.” She smiled at that. She smiled as Ciel started to scream at her. She tuned out his voice, tuned out everyone trying to calm him down. She also tuned out Soma and everyone who told her to stop smiling. But for once, she could smile about that fact. Even as she felt tears crawl down her face and ruin her makeup even more, she smiled. 

“I am the Ultimate Watchdog!” she heard Ciel say as she tried to actually listen. 

“You are,” she said, “Because the real Ciel Phantomhive died in that fire along with your parents.”

“My legal name is-” 

“Because you changed it. Because you stole his identity. I won’t share your old name because I know how embarrassed you are by it… but you’re not Ciel. The little boy that died in that fire was Ciel Phantomhive. You are a thief who took his title and his glory. It takes a thief to be the Queen’s watchdog of the criminal underworld, though, doesn’t it?” Ciel said nothing to this. 

“...Was that your secret, Ciel?” Alois asked, “You’re the Ultimate Watchdog, but not this… boy… or whatever? 

“He’s not a distant figure! He was a boy that I was friends with! We were family, all of us,” Lizzy said. 

“Whatever. I say that if someone has a name they want to go by, then everyone should respect that,” he replied, “Besides, you’re the filthy murderer here.” Lizzy bit her lip and looked at the podium. 

“I am a murderer,” she said, “But I’ll die knowing that I’m not as nasty, vile, cruel, and childish as all of you.” 

“Are you kidding?” Alois asked sadistically, “You broke down because you’re a coward! You’re a crybaby, a little girl trapped in a grown woman’s body!” 

“Why do you perceive kindness as weakness?” she asked him, “Why do you think that when I cry, I’m giving up or being weak?” Alois glared at her. 

“...I can’t believe you felt pressured to either kill someone else or die yourself just to protect Ciel,” Hannah said. 

“You’re joking,” Ciel said with a frown, almost sounding drained. 

“I do feel bad for her,” Nina admitted, “I mean… who’s to say that any of us would’ve done the same if our secrets meant that much to us?” 

“For Christ’s sake, I confessed to murder!” Grell countered, “I don’t feel sympathy for someone who killed an innocent person because they were gonna feel bad if they shared a secret. And she shared the secret, anyways! So none of that matters, and Agni died for no reason!” 

“Our feelings do not matter at this point. They will matter after this trial is over,” Claude said, “Lizzy... Do you have a final statement to share?” 

“... My final statement?” Lizzy asked, slightly shocked, “I killed Agni and I’m terribly sorry for killing him. That man before you is not Ciel Phantomhive and I am not sorry for sharing our secret. I should’ve just shared it to begin with. Finally… I accept my consequences.” No one said anything to that. 

“Well! You weren’t supposed to confess! That’s not part of the rules,” Monokuma said, “But… I’ll let it pass! Okay, everyone! It’s time to vote. Vote for who you think the killer is!” The votes came in very quickly. 

“Alright! Let’s see who got the most votes.” 

**WHO RECEIVED THE MOST VOTES?**

**…**

**…**

**...**

**ELIZABETH MIDFORD!**

Monokuma laughed, “An unanimous vote! And everyone’s correct! Let’s get this show started.” Lizzy looked directly at Ciel. She knew how pissed he was, but she smiled at him. Her smile was sad yet peaceful. She knew what was about to happen to her, but not how exactly the mastermind would go about it. 

“ **_IIIIIIT’S PUNISHMENT TIME!!_ **” 

  
  


**TEA PARTY**

  
  
  


Elizabeth Midford sat at a long table in an unknown garden. Pink and white roses that grew on perfectly-maintained hedges surrounded her. There were plenty of stuffed animals sat at the table, but the only one that was alive was Monokuma, who sat at the very end of the table. 

“Lizzy, could you pass me the sugar, please?” He asked patronizingly. Lizzy tried to do so, but he sat too far away. She then realized how he had moved closer to her. She looked at the stuffed animal right next to her, a large Bitter Rabbit. She clung onto it as Monokuma grew closer and closer with each request. 

“Lizzy, could you pass me the petit fours, please?”

“Lizzy, could you pass me the sandwiches, please?” 

“Lizzy could you pass me the salt, please?” 

As he asked for more and more, she hid her face in the Bitter Rabbit. 

“Lizzy, could you look up, please?” he asked her. Slowly, she looked up. Monokuma was right in front of her, grinning. She whimpered and pulled the Bitter Rabbit close to her. 

“Lizzy,” he asked his last question, “Could you die, please?” Lizzy stared at him, and that was when she heard ticking coming from inside the Bitter Rabbit. Her eyes widened as everyone saw the carnage milliseconds before they heard the explosion. 

  
  


**THE BLACKENED HAS BEEN EXECUTED**

“HOLY FUCKING CHRIST!” Ronald shouted, holding his head with both hands, walking away from the scene. Grell stared with wide eyes, while Claude stared with narrowed eyes. Ciel felt like he would break down into hysterics at any moment. The others either reacted with horror or showed no emotion. 

“Well, that’s all for now, folks!” Monokuma said. That was when Ciel actually broke down into hysterics. Sebastian immediately grabbed him, and Will ordered everyone to leave the courtroom. They all waited outside the elevator. Ciel tried to calm down his breathing, but he couldn’t. 

He could only scream, cry, and ask, “Why?” He wished that he had been the one to do it, not her. Why did she do it? Why did she tell the secret at the very end? Why did the Mastermind kill her in such an awful way? Sebastian stayed until Ciel had somewhat calmed down. 

“I don’t… I don’t understand.” 

“You’re processing what happened because it’s final. It’s okay,” Sebastian assured her, “Breathe.” Ciel listened and focused on taking deep breaths. 

“I want to leave,” Ciel told him. Sebastian agreed, figuring that it was okay, and helped him to the elevator. They all left as a group. 

Monokuma Lesson #7: You can’t always rely on your looks. 

Whether you’re cute, pretty, handsome, or even 

sexy, you have to use your brain sometimes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey y'all! I hope you're enjoying this so far. LMK what you think in the comments or on tumblr (theatmmmmmm). This chapter was so much fun to write. I admittedly had something ever so slightly different in mind for the execution but then I thought that I'd go for *that* since one of the tags is literally "Blood and Gore". Thanks so much for reading this far!


	8. Bullets in a Loaded Gun: Daily Life, Morning 1

The announcement played as Ciel stared up at the ceiling, “Good morning students! It is now seven AM! Everything is unlocked and you can roam freely. Keep a good attitude and have fun!” He groaned and slowly sat up. His head hurt and he had been up for over three hours. Whenever he closed his eyes, all he saw was Lizzy’s execution. And his dream… that was even worse; he saw all of his family perish. His parents, his brother, his aunt, and then his cousin. He didn’t realize until he was shaking until Monokuma popped in. 

“What’s got you all gloomy?” He asked, “You’re shaking, too, you know!” Ciel could only stare down at his bed. 

“Come on!! Didn’t you hear the announcement? Show me a smile!” Ciel glared at him. Monokuma seemed to study his eye, the one that was blinded during the fire. 

“This is a game, remember? Have fun!” Monokuma said. 

“...So the announcement was pre-recorded,” Ciel said at last. Monokuma tilted his head. 

“Why does that matter?” he asked, slightly annoyed, “You should probably head to the dining hall…. I think the others are waiting for you!” 

“Do you think that or do you know that?” Ciel asked for clarification. Monokuma confirmed that it was the latter. Ciel shooed him away and got dressed after the bear left. He then made his way to the dining hall, nervously tugging on his thick turtleneck. What did they want with him? If they were going to try to comfort him, then he’d have absolutely none of that. 

However, what he was greeted with was something odd; everyone was sitting at one table. It seemed as if they were having a debate. 

“We should have had more time to express what we thought,” Nina said. Grell and Mey-Rin agreed with silent nods. Will smirked at them. 

“If you have something that actually adds to the trial, then you should go ahead by all means. But none of you spoke up.” 

“Because you lot were talking over everyone!” Grell said, “You just couldn’t let any of us talk, huh?” Will glanced at Ciel. 

“Good. You’re here. We need to settle a few things.” Ciel slowly sat down next to Sebastian and Sieglinde, as if they agreed that Ciel should sit there. 

“What’s going on?” he asked. Everyone took notice of how tired he sounded, how he spoke slower than usual. 

“The women think that we’re talking over them,” Claude said, “That wasn’t our intention-” 

“But again, they’re allowed to speak when they have something to say that matters,” Will sneered. 

“Excuse me?! ‘Allowed’?!” Nina asked, raising her voice, “We’ll speak whenever we damn please about whatever we damn well want to talk about.” 

“Honestly, Will, it’s not that big of a deal,” Ronald said, “You definitely talked over the girls, but you’re forgetting that you wouldn’t let some of us even speak before you did.” 

“Well, for class trials, we should have a set agenda; it will all turn to chaos without one.” 

“Not true!” Grell said, “It’s not a god damn socratic seminar! This is our lives we’re dealing with. Who the fuck cares about order in a time like this?!” 

“I do,” Will said calmly, “You’re allowed to freak out but I’m certainly not going to. I’m going to maintain order within myself and the environment around me. As the Ultimate Manager, I lead. Others follow. So, I know when people are important. Ciel is important. He’s the Ultimate Watchdog, and can sniff out any evidence. If you want a loud voice in the class trial, then you should be more like him.”

“...I could punch you right now,” Grell said, “I really could.” 

“I’d happily join in,” Nina added. 

“Everyone, stop this at once,” Ciel said. Everyone looked at him. 

“...This is not the time to… Ugh,” Ciel said as he clutched his head, “...Argue. Stop arguing. You all have good points.” 

“Even Will?” Nina asked with a frown. 

“Well… You see, the thing is…. We should all be working together,” Ciel said, “Sieglinde has been working on escape plans this whole time and she barely had any time to speak to us in general, let alone in the class trial. We should be listening to what she has to say. Has anyone else been actively trying to help us all escape?” No one spoke up. 

“That’s the point I’m trying to make. We should give everyone a chance to speak. They think their information is important, and that is valid. Witnesses are always listened to, even if their information will be deemed as unimportant later on. What happens during a class trial doesn’t matter as long as we figure out who the Blackened is. With that said… I think developing an escape is very, very important. So… can we please stop arguing and agree that if someone has something to say, we should listen to them? Even if they are lying, even if they have a thought that is not as important… we should at least lend our ears to them and then determine how that information can be used. Are we all in agreement?” No one said anything for a few moments. Ciel wondered if that had been too much. 

“I understand what you’re saying,” Will said, “I’m only worried about this situation erupting into chaos. But... you’re right. As a manager, you are supposed to listen to your subordinates. That way, you can put plans into action that will benefit everyone.” The others agreed. Claude was solemnly staring at Ciel despite his agreement. 

“Now. About escape,” Ciel said, glancing at Sieglinde, “What have you come up with so far?” Sieglinde’s eyes sparkled and she smiled. She immediately set down a bunch of papers onto the table. 

“These are all my notes,” she announced, “I’ve been taking them as I’ve explored.” 

“So what have you found?” Sebastian asked her. 

“Every window has been sealed off with thick metal panels.” A few groaned. 

“Well… I did find one entrance that’s been locked,” she said, “There’s a staircase that leads to the second floor dormitory.” 

“I didn’t even know that existed,” Ciel replied, “I never saw it on our maps.” 

“That’s because the map in the e-Handbook has that part of the building purposefully removed,” Sebastian said, “Could that be a possible chance of escape?” 

“I think so!” Sieglinde agreed, “The mastermind locked it for a good reason.” 

“So how would we even escape? Is there no escape?!” Soma asked, starting to panic. 

“We can’t give up already!” Sieglinde replied, “I think our best bet is figuring out how to get to that floor and figuring out who the mastermind is!” The others agreed. 

“...Lizzy and I found out that the mastermind is one of us,” Ciel said rather darkly. 

“Okay then,” Soma said as he stood up, “Whoever is the mastermind, speak your truth!” Crickets. 

“... Did you think that would work?” Ronald asked at last. 

“Not really,” Soma said with a shrug, “It’d be nice if it did, though.” He sat back down. 

“Well, now we’re back at square one,” Claude huffed, adjusting his glasses, “Who could be capable of being the mastermind?” 

“You,” Will said absentmindedly. 

“You’re kidding,” Claude said with a deep frown, “I could never. It’d be too… 

“Think about it, though,” Ronald said, “The Mastermind is recording all this, or at least watching us.” He gestured towards the security cameras. 

“And when you think about it, filmmakers are usually directors. And what are directors? Masterminds of the movies they make.  Film-maker. Director. Mastermiiiind!” 

“That’s the stupidest logic I’ve ever heard, and yet, it works,” Will said, a smile creeping onto his face. 

“It doesn’t,” Claude sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose, “I only direct about half of the films I actually film.” 

“And Monokuma doesn’t talk like Claude,” Ciel added. 

“Oh? How does he talk?” Will asked. 

“In my opinion - if I may interject- Monokuma has two personalities,” said Sebastian, “Monokuma is either very emotional or not emotional at all. He can be fun and reactive one minute and then completely complying and stoic the next. This could be because of many things, though.” 

“What if there are two masterminds?” Alois suggested out of the blue. Claude and Seb glared at him, but so did Will and Ciel. 

“That doesn’t make sense,” Ciel shook his head, “I refuse to believe that two of us are working together to torture the rest. That’s just madness, Alois!” 

“You think so?” Alois asked with a smirk, “I dunno. Could be fun.” 

“Fun?!” Mey-Rin asked, “That’s anything but fun. That’s twice the threat. Hello?? Are you-” 

“We get it,” Claude interrupted her, “Alois, that definitely wouldn’t be fun.” Ciel realized that Hannah had been quiet during all of this. Wolfram was at least agreeing with everything that was happening. 

“What do you think, Hannah?” he decided to ask her. She looked up at him, feeling the eyes of everyone on her, but she felt like Claude and Alois were the only pair of eyes that mattered. 

“I… I’m not sure who could be the mastermind, I’m sorry,” she said. Claude seemed pleased with that answer, but Alois certainly wasn’t. 

“Why don’t you at least take a quest?” he asked, smiling at her. Hannah looked at him for a brief second, then looked back at the table. 

“... You all seem too… I don’t know. Maybe Monokuma lied to you, Ciel. We don’t have enough information to pinpoint who it could be.” 

“What if it’s you?” Alois asked, his smile turning into a smirk. 

“It’s not me.” 

His brow furrowed and his tone grew harsh, “Why say all of this, then?” Claude did nothing as Alois started to berate her.

“Leave her alone, you brat!” Grell suddenly raised her voice. 

“Oh? You dare challenge me?” Alois asked. Grell growled out of frustration, clenching her fists. 

“Stop it,” Ciel said with a glare, “You’re making things difficult.” 

“This is exactly what I was trying to avoid,” Will said, “It’s good that we figured out the cause of chaos, though.” 

“Hmm?” Alois asked him with an innocent smile, “I’m just asking Hannah

“You’re being purposefully antagonistic,” Sebastian said. Alois stared at him as he stood up, his innocent smile becoming crazed. 

“Pardon, but are you talking to me?”

“Excuse me?” 

“I’m asking you a question: are you talking to me?” 

“Yes, I am-” 

“Then don’t,” Alois sneered, “I don’t want trash talking to me. In fact… Maybe we should take this in private. Right, Hannah?” Hannah flinched, quickly nodded and stood up. . 

“No. Stop this at once,” Claude spoke in a very monotone way, as if he didn’t care; it seemed like he just wanted Alois to not cause a scene. Alois looked at him with narrowed eyes. 

“...We’re going to have a long talk after this,” Alois whispered into his ear before walking away. Claude didn’t flinch like Hannah had. 

“I apologize,” Claude said to the others. 

“What’s his issue?!” Grell asked, “He’s the worst.” 

Hannah sniffed and wiped some tears, “Alois is… well, he’s just very-” 

“-Fucked up,” Claude admitted, “He’s beyond just being mentally unstable. Plenty of unstable, ill people don’t act like that.” 

“He’s just cruel!” Grell shouted. 

“Exactly,” Claude said with a nod, “That’s his personality.”

“What an awful boy,” Mey-Rin said, “Ah! He’s your age, right Ciel? I’m so sorry, I-” 

“No, it’s fine,” Ciel said, “He acts like a child.” Claude said nothing to this.

“None of you understand,” Hannah said, still sniffling, “He’s…” 

“He’s what, Hannah?” Claude challenged her using the same monotone voice he did earlier. Hannah stared at him, then slowly shook her head. 

_ You’ll see _ , she thought,  _ You’ll all see.  _


	9. Bullets in a Loaded Gun: Daily Life, Afternoon 1

After breakfast and Alois’ “private talk”, Hannah went to the garden to tend to the plants. She looked up at her creation and smiled. Reminiscing her younger years, Hannah remembered how she was neither popular nor unpopular, but her gardening skills were especially revered. But what had she done since graduating from Hope’s Peak? 

First and foremost, she met Claude. When they met, Claude was slightly more expressive. In act, when Alois wasn’t around, Claude showed some more emotion. In Hannah’s opinion, Claude completely shut off his emotions around Alois in order to not be a target and to establish dominance. After all, Alois was ruthless. As she continued to tend to the plants and think about her whole life, she didn’t notice that Grell was watching her. The Ultimate Actress wasn’t outright stalking her or even actively observing her, though; Grell Sutcliff was sitting at a table that had been set up near the chicken coop, drinking some iced coffee. She occasionally glanced up at Miss Annafellows, admiring her hard work and dedication to the garden. Grell wondered why Hannah even let Alois put her down all the time if she could easily create a plant that could kill. 

Once Hannah seemed to be finished, Grell called her name. Hannah looked over before approaching her.

“Hello, Grell,” she said, “I’m glad you all seem to like this garden. I’m really glad it’s still here to begin with, though.”

“Oh? You’d really think the mastermind would get rid of a garden where a man-eating plant resides?” Grell said with a soft giggle, “ Sit down. Let’s chat.” Hannah agreed and sat across from her. 

“Admittedly, I’m worried about someone using it to their advantage,” Hannah said before she drank some water, “However… I doubt the plant will tolerate that. Anyone with malicious intent will most likely get too close to it, making themselves the victim of it.” Grell laughed. 

“That would surely be a deserved death, then,” she said. Hannah agreed, but she didn’t show it. 

She then said, “All of this just…” 

“Sucks? Tell me about it,” Grell said, “We don’t have any access to the outside world. I was so close to finishing a show, too. I can’t believe I’ll never know if-” Hannah spaced out. Not on purpose. She thought about how beautiful Grell was, how passionate she even was about something as minute as a tv show. She smiled and nodded along with what Grell was saying. 

“So why do you hate this?” Grell asked. 

“Oh. The killing,” Hannah said. 

“...Oh,” Grell replied, looking slightly embarrassed, “Yeah, ,that’s a good reason.” 

“It sucks that we can’t escape,” Hannah said, “I mean, without being able to contact the outside world, how would we be able to?” Grell nodded. If she was to be honest with herself, Grell didn’t mind the killing aspect of it. She really just wanted to finish that series. If she died without finishing it, she’d haunt the mastermind to no end. 

“...What do you think of that Ciel fellow?” Grell asked Hannah. 

“He seems nice,” Hannah spoke softly, “I thought you knew him? 

“Only vaguely. I know Sebastian waaay better.” Hannah nodded. 

“Ciel seems… trustworthy,” she said, “I appreciate how he manages to keep the peace while also leading.” 

“And he figured out that Lizzy killed Agni,” Grell added, then sighed, “I feel a bit bad for him. He’s one of the youngest people here and he’s managed to be more mature than everyone here. I certainly don’t blame him for breaking down after the trial. We really ought to help him.” 

“Well… we all should be working together,” Hannah said with a nod. 

“Exactly! But do those grown-ass men that keep trying to lead us and take over the conversation want to do that? Doesn’t seem like it.” They both laughed. 

  
  


Monokuma Lesson #8: If you come across a bear, do not run or play dead. 

  
  


Ciel was in the library with Sieglinde, forming a plan of escape. A pencil was tucked behind his ear, one that he occasionally grabbed to write something down. 

“So! If there’s any way to escape from the dorms,” Sieglinde went over the plan, “Then either you, Sebastian, or I will escape. Afterwards, we’ll scope out the outside world, and either return with a ladder - or the makeshift ladder as mentioned - or go get help.” 

“Exactly,” Ciel said with a quick nod, “Do you think a ladder will be in that shed? The one in the garden?” 

“Maybe,” Sieglinde said, “There could be a ladder anywhere, though.” 

“Precisely,” Ciel said, “Which means we need more people in on this plan. I’ve seen step stools and various items that could work, but no actual ladder.” 

“Damn,” Sieglinde sighed, “Oh well! We should take this to Seb and Wolfram, though. Maybe they can find a ladder!” Ciel agreed. He then looked around the library and found the door to the archives. He stared at it before walking towards it. Slightly confused, Sieglinde followed him. He opened the door. 

“Oh,” he said, “This is definitely useful.” Sieglinde grinned and walked into the archives. Ciel watched her look around and glance through the files. 

“Oooh, Ciel, look!” she said, pulling out a few files in particular, “It’s some folders about crimes!” Ciel cocked a brow and entered the room.

“Really?” he asked as she passed the folders to him. He glanced through them. 

“Ah- these are classified unsolved cases,” he said, eyes widened. The case he was looking at in particular was the case from Japan of Genocide Jack. 

“How cool!” Sieglinde said, “And here’s some documents from… businesses? The government? Both?” 

“Also classified, most likely,” Ciel replied, “How could this school have all of these documents at anyone’s disposal?” 

“Well, I’m sure the staff had a key to it. If students had access to this, that’d just be reckless. Maybe the more important question to ask is why do we have access to it.” Ciel looked at her with a soft smile. She was so smart. Or was he just dumb? Either way, it didn’t matter. Sieglinde was just great. No, she was more than great. If only he had told her that a year ago. Maybe she was over him and he was too late to realize that he felt the same. 

“Um, Ciel?” she asked, “Are you okay?” Ciel felt his face grow even warmer. 

“Oh! Yeah, sorry,” he said, “We should read through these.” 

“Sounds like a plan!” She replied with a big smile. Ciel smiled back at her. 

  
  


Monokuma Lesson #9: Romance is boring! Try some despair; you’ll never 

want to read about something as icky as romance again! 

  
  


Sebastian was in the pool locker room getting dressed; after a nice swim, he had taken a shower and was preparing himself to face this school once more. As he styled his hair, he met eyes with his reflection. And then tears fell down his reflection’s face. He bit his lip, keeping in the wails he desperately wanted to let out. 

_ Why Agni? Out of all these people, Agni was the first to go? Why?!  _

He grabbed his hair and closed his eyes. He couldn’t bear to look at himself. He heard the locker room door open, so he quickly looked up and managed to calm himself down, only sniffling occasionally. Will passed by, not even acknowledging him. God, he wanted to punch Will. Everyone would agree that if Will was murdered, he’d have it coming. Will only noticed when Seb found himself unable to leave the locker room. 

“...Are you okay?” he asked. Seb didn’t look at him, expecting him to say something rude if he realized that he had been crying. 

“I’m fine,” Sebastian said at last. 

“That’s always what people who aren’t fine say. If you were okay, you would’ve just said yes,” Will said, “... I’m sorry if what I said yesterday upset you. That’s just how I talk and... I didn’t realize that he was your friend.” Sebastian said nothing to that. 

“... More than friends?” Will asked him, trying to be supportive. Sebastian finally looked at him. 

“Yeah,” was all he said, “You’re not the reason I’m upset, though.” Will nodded. 

“Of course,” he said, “I didn’t expect that you’d be upset because of me, but I certainly didn’t help… I’m a hardass because that’s how I was taught to be.” Seb still looked at him, listening. 

“That’s how I survived.” 

“Yeah. That makes sense.” 

“I realize now that in this situation I should be… more wary of others, but more importantly… respectful. Making enemies by taking control of everything and throwing around insults is how you get killed,” Will said, “Although… I’m certainly not making friends with Grell.” Sebastian laughed. 

“Same here,” he replied, “Well, I appreciate your change in heart.” Will simply nodded and waited for Seb to leave so he could change. As soon as he was back in the hallways of Hope’s Peak, Seb let out a sigh.  _ Back to being the one who’s put-together yet outspoken _ , he thought,  _ Back to being the Ultimate Butler to the Ultimate Watchdog. _


	10. Bullets in a Loaded Gun: Daily Life, Night 1

Monokuma Lesson #10: Basically… just enjoy it! 

Take time to smell the roses.

  
  


By the time the nightly announcement passed, everyone realized that they were safe from an announcement in the middle of the night. Therefore… it was time to celebrate. Sebastian was wandering around, walking to clear his mind. However, someone started walking next to him. 

“... Do you want to come to the rec room with me?” Wolfram asked. Sebastian looked over at him, a soft blush forming. 

“Sure!” He said with a smile. As they walked up the two flights of stairs, Sebastian wondered what Wolfram had in store for him. Even if he was mourning Agni, Wolfram was definitely someone he found interesting. However, his dreams were crushed when all the other guys save for Soma, Ciel, and Alois were in the rec room. The TV was on and alcohol was on the pool table. 

“Can’t we put this somewhere else?” Will asked as he pointed at the alcohol, “I want to play some pool.” 

“Really?” Ron asked, frowning slightly. Will’s eyes narrowed. 

“Sure, I’ll help move it,” Claude said as he finished a beer, “And I’ll even play against you.” Will smirked. 

“Have fun losing, then,” Will said. They moved the alcohol to the jukebox. Sebastian looked around before looking back at Wolfram, who smiled and handed him a beer. He drank his own as Seb took a ginger sip. 

“Sebastian!” Ron called out to him. Sebastian glanced over and decided to sit across from him, next to Wolfram. 

“So… what’s brought you here?” he asked. 

“Wolfram,” Seb replied honestly. 

“Oh!” Ron replied, “Right. I sent him to go get you.” 

“Well, what did you want to talk about?” 

“You know Ciel, right?” Ron said, “That dude saved my skin. Like… I didn’t show it, but I was super scared during the trial. Like… what if you guys chose me? I mean, I had no alibi, I was just… I dunno! I should probably wake up earlier, you know, because I slept until eleven, but… I dunno! God, that was scary, wasn’t it?” Seb just stared at him. 

“Ciel definitely helped us,” Wolfram said with a nod. Seb slowly nodded along. 

“You okay, bud?” Ron asked Seb. Will glanced over at them while Claude made another move in their game. 

“...Yes,” he said, feeling Will stare at him, “Just kinda tired.” 

“Want some coffee? Soda?” Ron asked, “Or even an energy drink? We brought a cooler into here.”

“No thanks. I don’t really feel like being up all night.” 

“Aw, if you say so,” Ron said with a laugh, “But we all gotta do something to keep the edge off. I mean… doing all this kinda stops us from murdering each other. Right?” 

“Maybe so,” Undertaker said as he walked in, “But maybe not. It’s hard to say.” 

“I haven’t been proven wrong yet!” Ronald said with a big smile, “The absence of evidence doesn’t mean the evidence of absence!” 

“Pardon?” Seb asked. 

Undertaker explained, “A lack of evidence doesn’t prove that something’s not real or true.” 

“Oh,” Seb said with a nod, “I understand.” Wolfram nodded along. 

“It’s scientific theory!” Ronald said. William immediately glared at him.

“Scientific theory is quite the opposite! Scientific theory is an explanation of the world around us with plenty of evidence. What you’ve described is literally the opposite!” 

“Well… Sometimes, things just can’t be explained,” Ronald said with a shrug, “Like Bigfoot or the Loch Ness Monster.” 

“Neither of those things exist!” Will countered.

“Tsk, tsk, tsk. Absence of evidence doesn’t mean the evidence of absence!” 

“Stop saying that!” Will said. Claude failed to keep in a snicker. Will looked back at him.

“Well, you’re certainly in a good mood,” he said to him, crossing his arms. 

“It’s just amusing to see you two argue over something so trivial,” Claude replied before winning the game of pool. Will gasped. 

“How did you-” 

“You’ll have to thank Ronald for helping me distract you,” Claude replied. Will glared at Ronald once more, who only shrugged with that same big smile on his face. 

“Didn’t mean to,” he said. Things continued as normal, but Seb sat there feeling completely isolated. This was not his crowd. Claude? Sure, he’s spent time with him before this. But sitting in the rec room surrounded by all of this masculine energy? It just wasn’t him. 

“So… are you all content with staying here, or...?” Seb asked everyone. They all looked at him. 

“Well… like I said! You gotta take the edge off somehow!” Ron said with a smile, “If all of us were focusing on escape or trying to win, we’d all go mental!” 

“We would! We’d all go bonkers!” Undertaker agreed. 

“If you want to discuss the game… we could,” Claude said. 

“Let’s just keep it light, though,” Wolfram said, “I don’t think it’s a good idea to talk about something like this for that long.” Seb agreed and they all focused on the topic at hand. 

“Could we become accomplices?” Ronald asked, “Would they become a Blackened? Would they, too, graduate?” Wolfram was immediately uncomfortable with the question. 

“Most likely not,” Claude replied, “I assume that only the person who actually murdered someone would be qualified for graduation.” 

“What about escape?” Wolfram quickly asked, “Maybe we should talk about escaping. Sieglinde and Ciel have already created a plan, and-” 

“How will we escape with that plan when no one can access that level?” Will asked, “It’s a good plan if any of us could manage to get there.” 

“Someone could slip through the bars?” Ronald asked jokingly. 

“Who? One of the girls?” Will asked. 

“Or Sebastian,” Undertaker suggested. Everyone but Sebastian laughed. 

Seb protested, “Come on-” 

“What about air ducts?” Will pointed up at the ceiling. 

“Again, who’s the unlucky soul going up there? Certainly none of us,” Claude said.

“You’re right, you’re right,” Ronald sighed, “It sucks, but Wolf’s right; maybe we should develop our own escape plan?” 

“What do you suggest?” Seb asked with a hopeful smile. 

“Hmm… I dunno! I was hoping one of you would suggest something,” Ronald said. There was silence after that. 

Eventually, Undertaker said, “If we can access the vents, that wouldn’t be a half bad idea. But we don’t know where they would even lead.” 

“Oh! You know, there is that one locked room… the Data Processing room,” Ronald said, “Maybe we could barge in and see what’s up.” 

“Absolutely not!” Will said, “Look back at the rules. No locked doors can be broken down.” 

“So that takes out my plan of going through the Headmaster’s Office,” Claude sighed. 

Seb asked, “What happens if we break a rule?” 

“‘Punishment’,” Will said with air quotes, “The mastermind will kill us for sure.” 

“...Could you imagine if instead of giving you detention, your headmaster just killed you after you were late three times in a row?” Ronald asked. Everyone chuckled. 

“That’s a sight to see,” Wolfram replied, “Maybe we should change the subject.” 

“What’s wrong?” Ronald asked. That was when Soma walked by the open door. He stopped, walked back over to them and looked into the room. 

“Hey!” Ronald greeted him, “Want to come join us?” Soma let out a soft sniffle and wiped his eyes before agreeing. Ronald supplied him with alcohol as he seemed to cheer up at first. Will challenged Claude to another game of pool, and everything seemed to be perking up once more. 

That is, until Soma started slurring and crying. 

“I just...I miss Agni!” he said, “I cannot believe that… That that… I can’t even say anything mean about her! Damn it! She made him leave! He was trying so hard to stay while also being nice to her!” Ronald rubbed his back as he cried. Will and Claude looked at one other and tried to continue playing pool. Seb wanted to follow in Soma’s shoes, but would that be productive? Probably not. 

“Why did she have to be so selfish?!” Soma asked, “Why?” No one had anything to say to that. 

“It’s not… It doesn’t…,” Soma let out a sigh before letting out shuddering sobs. Will messed up his shot, giving Claude an upper hand. 

“How can you focus?” Will asked in a whisper. Claude shrugged. 

“After a while, you get used to people crying in front of you, expecting you to act normal,” he whispered back as Seb, Wolfram, and Ronald comforted Soma. 

Will asked, “Hannah and Alois?” Claude simply nodded. Eventually, Seb helped Soma back to his room. 

“Damn,” Ronald said after they left, “I really feel bad for them.” 

“As do I,” Will admitted, letting out a sigh. 

“What?” Ronald asked, confused, “You?” 

“...Of course I do,” Will replied with a frown. 

“I think we all do,” Claude said with a slightly irritated sigh. Everyone agreed. 

“...It’d be a shame if they died,” Undertaker said at last, “Well, Soma at least.” 

“Is that the tenth suspicious thing you’ve said today?” Ronald asked him. 

“Sure is,” Undertaker said, then shrugged, “Can’t really help it, though! No filter and morbid thoughts always equals suspicion. But I promise! I have no intention to kill. I’m just an undertaker by heart.” 

“... Make that the eleventh suspicious thing you’ve said today,” Will quipped. 

“Wait,” Claude said, slightly putting his hand out, “‘Soma at least’?” 

“...Something about Sebastian rubs me the wrong way,” Undertaker admitted, “He comes in here when we’re trying to avoid talking about the killing game just to talk about it. It’s either obsession or actively enjoying this.” 

“We ended up talking about escape,” Ronald said, trying to lift the mood, “I think that’s what he wanted to talk about, anyways.” 

“Yes, but I agree with what Undertaker is saying,” Wolfram said, “He may not be the Mastermind, but he seems… like he has a motive to kill.” Everyone went silent.

“And that is?” Will asked at last. 

“Well, Agni’s dead,” Wolf said, “Even though Lizzy is gone, Ciel and Alois were close to her, right? Despite being close to Ciel, Sebastian may suddenly… pardon my lack of better wording here, but he may snap and kill him. Although he solved the mystery of Agni’s death, Sebastian may direct his anger and grief at the wrong person.” 

“You’re saying he may go after Alois, too, right?” Claude asked. Wolfram nodded. 

“We should be very wary of him, then,” Undertaker said, a smile spreading across his face. 

“What we should be doing is keeping the same energy with Soma,” Ronald said. Will shook his head. 

“Soma just got drunk and broke down thanks to you,” he said, “He’s vulnerable, much more likely to become a victim.” 

“I was just trying to cheer him up,” Ronald said with a shrug, “Didn’t realize that he’d be a sad drunk.”

“… Who is the mastermind?” Claude asked. They all looked at one another. 

“Maybe it’s Ciel?” Ronald suggested at last. Silence. Then he laughed. 

“Nahhh, I’m joking,” he said, “It’s probably one of the girls.” 

“Grell,” Will immediately said. 

“Just because you don’t like her doesn’t mean that she’s the mastermind,” Claude replied. 

“She could be the Mastermind, though!” Will retorted. 

Undertaker sighed, “Any one of us could be the Mastermind. That’s the point. Even Agni, even Lizzy.” 

“Whoa. You’re not suggesting that their deaths were faked, are you?” 

“That’s pretty impossible to do with those two,” Wolfram said, shaking his head, “I mean… the carnage of it all was just… it seemed too real.” Wolfram said nothing after that, even as the conversation continued. Eventually, the guys packed it up for the night and headed elsewhere, whether it was their rooms, the library, or other rooms that weren’t restricted. 


	11. Bullets in a Loaded Gun: Daily Life, Morning 2

Monokuma Lesson #11: You ever wonder why you experience 

psychosomatic pain? Why do your feeble bodies try to warn you 

about its own problems so that you don’t drop dead? 

It’d be amusing if it just gave you no warning signs. 

  
  


Ciel woke up with a raging headache. He clutched his head as he barely managed to dress himself. He quickly stumbled out of his room before bumping into Claude. He winced, but Claude seemed completely unaffected. 

“Are you alright?” He asked, looking down at the short man. 

“...I have a headache,” Ciel said before starting to walk away. 

“I saw some medicine in both the warehouse and the chemistry lab,” Claude said. Ciel stopped, but didn’t turn around. 

“Uh...I’ll look in the warehouse, first,” Ciel said, “Thank you.” Claude watched him walk into the warehouse. He smiled before walking to Alois’ room. 

In the warehouse, Ciel murmured to himself about the pain until he managed to find some heavy-duty migraine medicine in a duffel bag. He took his chances and grabbed the box. He rushed to the dining hall. Once there, he chugged down a big glass of water after taking two pills. Afterward, he realized that he was the only one there. He glanced over at the clock. It was 7:30, so where was everyone? He sat down and rested his head on the table. The stabbing pain started to slowly subside. Eventually, everyone walked in and separated into small groups as per usual. Ciel decided to eat with Sebastian, Sieglinde, and Wolfram. Ciel realized that one person was missing; where was Soma? 

“I feel really bad for Soma,” Sebastian said, “I invited him to breakfast but he said that he wasn’t up for it.” Ciel glanced at him. 

“I see,” he replied, “I agree.” Ciel looked around to double check who had sat by who. It seemed that Alois was tolerating Will, who was only tolerating him because he wanted to talk to Claude. It was odd to see Hannah sitting with Grell, Mey-Rin, and Nina. Undertaker and Ronald were in the middle of the two tables, going back and forth to talk to everyone over there. Seb, Wolf, Sieglinde, and Ciel all realized that they were far away from the others. 

“It’s… odd to see everyone just seem… compliant?” Sieglinde asked, “I’d say that it’s nice that we’re all getting along, but… what if they suspect us?” 

“Well, if you have no plans to murder, then there’s nothing to worry about,” Ciel joked. He then frowned, glancing at his breakfast. Seb and Wolfram exchanged glances. 

“They’re trying to develop an escape plan of their own,” Wolfram said. 

“What?!” Sieglinde asked, “What’s wrong with my plan?” 

“Well, there was talk of trying to develop a plan,” Seb explained, “I doubt one will actually be made, though.” Wolfram agreed.

“They suggested things that were impossible,” Wolfram said, “How thin are the spaces between the bars?” 

“If a person could squeeze between them, there’d be no point to have bars in the first place,” Ciel said, “But to answer your question, even Sieglinde would get stuck if she attempted to go through the bars.” Wolfram nodded. 

“I figured,” he said, “They have no idea what they’re talking about, then.” 

“Do you two know about the air ducts or vents?” Seb asked. Ciel and Sieglinde looked at one another. 

“I didn’t think that would work,” Sieglinde said, “But it might. We’d have to actually get one open and see.” 

“I tried that in my room last night,” Ciel said, “I saw a vent and tried to check, but not only did I get scolded by Monokuma for ‘trying to destroy property’, but it was too small for anyone to go through.” 

“Damn,” Sieglinde sighed, “This sucks.” 

“How did you not get punished?” Wolfram asked Ciel, “You used your tool kit, right?” 

“Oh, the bear was beyond pissed,” Ciel laughed softly, “But I had to grovel just to get out of dying.” Sebastian laughed at this. 

“You? Begging and groveling?” he asked. 

“Unfortunately,” Ciel replied, still smiling. Ciel looked back at the other tables as the other three continued to talk. He focused on Mey-Rin. Something just felt off about her. For someone who was the Ultimate Sniper, she sure was clumsy. Plus, she wore some thick glasses. Was this a facade? A cover-up? 

“Should we figure out what everyone’s secrets are?” Ciel asked. Sieglinde looked at him. 

“It probably isn’t important,” she said, “Well, I mean the secrets are personal, but the Mastermind probably dug it all up just to make us kill one another.” 

“And it worked,” Sebastian said what Sieglinde didn’t want to say, “It’s best to not dig deeper.” 

“... But I have many questions about them,” Ciel said, “Like Mey-Rin… what do you think her secret is.” 

“It’s probably something minuscule,” Sieglinde suggested. 

“She’s the Ultimate Sniper,” Ciel said, “What if it involves the Mastermind?” 

“Why would it?” Seb asked with narrowed eyes. 

Ciel stared at him, “Anyone who didn’t share their secret could be involved with the Mastermind.” 

“How so?” Wolfram asked, “The same could be said about those that did.” 

“...I’m calling a meeting,” Ciel said as he stood up, “We need to discuss this all together.” He announced that they would all have a meeting after breakfast. 

“It’s nothing urgent,” he said, “So take your time. However, this will be a team-building exercise. If we can get through this, then we will be leaps and bounds closer to figuring out who the Mastermind is!” 

_Was that true?_ Sebastian thought. 

  
  


Monokuma Lesson #12: These kinds of exercises are the worst. BEAR with us. 

  
  


Everyone had gathered around one table in the library, Ciel being front and center. 

“We have to decide what to do about these secrets,” Ciel said, “Monokuma only brought it up as motive, but if we can figure out our own purposes for them, then we’ll have a leg up on the Mastermind.” 

“...So you want us to share them?” Alois asked with a frown. 

“No,” Ciel said, “It is up to your own discretion whether or not you want to share the secret. I just want anyone that has something important to share to… well, share it. It could be your secret, but it could be anything you’ve found while we’ve been here.” Ciel glanced over at Soma, who was staring at the ground. At first, there was silence. And then…

“Okay! Fine!” Mey-Rin spoke up, sounding pressured and scared, “I’m a spy! You caught me!” 

“What?” Ciel asked, as did a few others.

“I noticed that you were looking at me during breakfast,” she explained, “Now, I’m not a spy for the Mastermind, but-” 

“How do we know that for sure?” Will quickly asked. 

“Why would I share my secret just now if I was?” she asked him. Will sighed. 

“Very well,” he said. Mey-Rin continued. 

“You only called this meeting just to expose me,” she looked at Ciel, “So I’ll just say it myself because you all surely would’ve twisted it out of context.” Ciel looked pleased with himself. 

“‘Team-building exercise’. Yeah, right,” Nina murmured under her breath, beyond pissed.

I thought we had a mole on our hands, but I’m glad you’re just a spy for… who, exactly?” Ciel asked. 

“The military,” Mey-Rin, “The Japanese military. And I’ve helped the Togami family, various other wealthy families around here-” 

“So you’re like a hitman?” Ron asked, “How cool!” Mey-Rin blushed, but others seemed far less amused than Ronald. 

“So why the glasses?” Ciel asked. Mey-Rin sighed and took them off. Before them all were the coppery eyes of a sniper; they were cold and calculated, focused and analyzing. 

“Because I’ve been told my eyes are intimidating,” she admitted, then smiled, “And they are. But they are my tools. Tools I love to protect. So the glasses stay on, even if they impair my vision somewhat.” She put them back on. 

“Were they made just for you?” Sebastian asked. Mey-Rin nodded. 

“I helped design them!” Nina said, smiling, “I’m so proud of them.” 

“That was the second thing I wanted to ask about,” Ciel said, “So. Are you two friends? Lovers? What is it?” 

“How personal!” Nina gasped, “Why do you need to know that?!” 

“You just seem close,” Ciel replied, “I wouldn’t want you two deciding to betray us all just to save yourselves.”

“Oh, we’d never,” Nina said, “First off, only one person graduates after a murder. Secondly, I’m not leaving this place without her.” Mey-Rin nodded. 

“I’m not leaving here without Nina,” she said, “I’d never do something as selfish as sacrifice others for my own safety.” Ciel slowly nodded. 

“I’m glad we’re all in agreement, then,” Ciel announced, “Okay, that’s all I wanted.” 

“Wait a minute,” Soma spoke up at last, “That’s it? You called us all in here to watch you talk to Mey-Rin?” 

“He clearly wanted everyone to know whether or not I was a spy for the mastermind,” Mey-Rin said, “Why’d you think that, anyways?” 

“You keep trying to make yourself innocuous and clumsy despite being the Ultimate Sniper,” Ciel confessed, “And you keep looking around - at the cameras and in general.” 

“Being watched freaks me out. And Monokuma’s creepy as hell. I mean, thinking about the Mastermind possibly using him just to keep a personal watch on us? It’s weird. Very weird.”

“Hey, hey, hey!” Monokuma sprung out of nowhere, “Who’re you calling creepy?” Mey-Rin jumped out of her seat, clinging onto Nina. 

“What do you want?” Ciel asked, glaring at the bear. 

“I just wanted to join in on the fun,” he said before immediately laughing, “Just kidding! This is laaaame, just go kill each other or something! Give into despair!” 

“Despair?” Will asked, “What do you mean?” 

“Despair… well, that’s just the opposite of hope. And you all REEK of it! I mean, ugh! It’s disgusting,” Monokuma snarled, “Despair, despair, despair! It’s what makes the world spin on its axis!” 

“Can you leave us be?” Alois asked with a frown, “You’re really killing the mood.” 

“Am I? TOO BAD! So you found out Mey-Rin was a spy… how does that help you at all to figure out who the Mastermind is?” 

“Well, I expected her to be working for you,” Ciel said, “But she clearly doesn’t.” 

“Do you know that for sure?” Monokuma teased. 

“I’d never work for someone as awful as you!” Mey-Rin shot up from her seat to face her fear. 

“Careful, now! No touching, please, or I’ll punish you!” Mey-Rin glared at him. 

“I’ll do it!” Monokuma threatened. Mey-Rin sat back down. 

“But yeah, she doesn’t work for me,” he continued, “It’d be nice to have eyes other than my own on the inside. Honestly, all work and no play makes me a dull bear!” He then grew serious. 

“All hope and no despair makes for a boring killing game.” No one rebutted that.

“Okay! Goodbye! I’m done here!” Monokuma left with a laugh. The group slowly dispersed after Ciel agreed that the meeting was over. Ciel and Sieglinde went back to analyzing all the classified files in the archives as everyone else did their own thing once more. 


	12. Bullets in a Loaded Gun: Daily Life, Afternoon 2

In the garden, Grell and Hannah were sitting together once again, just drinking tea. Hannah had already tended to the plants. However, Hannah looked bothered. Grell was about to ask her, but that was when Claude joined them. 

“I hope you don’t mind me joining,” he said. Before Grell could say that she did actually mind, Hannah told him that it was alright. It was now Grell’s turn to look bothered as everyone stayed silent. 

“... I don’t know how to feel about Ciel,” Claude confessed at last. 

“What, about the meeting?” Grell asked, “Yeah, I didn’t really like that, either. I really expected to learn more about everyone else.” Claude smirked ever so slightly. 

“I meant in general, but that’s certainly a start,” he replied, “It felt… staged. Odd.” 

“Hm?” Hannah and Grell both asked. 

“I have a working theory that maybe… just maybe… Ciel is the mastermind.” 

“...Makes sense,” Grell said, “I mean, when you think about it… Ciel seems to know everything, seems to figure out everything. He’s practically been declared the leader. But what if it’s all because he is the mastermind? And what if that thing with Mey-Rin was staged? What if she is working with him?” 

“But here’s the thing I still don’t understand,” Hannah sighed, shaking her head, “If the Mastermind is one of us, how can they control Monokuma?” 

“...Maybe Monokuma’s sentient,” Claude suggested, “Perhaps he doesn’t need to be controlled... only guided.” Grell looked around and sighed. 

“Honestly, that thing reminds me of Beetlejuice,” she quipped, “I fear that it’ll show up if we say its name too many times.” 

“You fear Monokuma?” Claude asked in a half-taunting tone. 

“You raaang?” Monokuma asked. Grell frowned at the bear. 

“So what are you?” she asked immediately. 

“Whaaat? Are you stupid? I’m a bear!” 

“Are you a robot?” she asked, “Or… like… a machine?” Monokuma said nothing to that. 

“Uhhh,” Hannah said, nervous. Claude simply sighed. 

He said, “I assume the Mastermind doesn’t want him to tell us.”

“Okay, so you think it can actually think of its own accord?” Grell asked. 

“Enough of this nerd talk!” Monokuma said, “What did you want?” 

“Well, that’s just it,” said Grell, “We want to know more about you.” 

“Aww, really? You must like me or something!” Monokuma teased. 

“Definitely not,” Grell growled. 

“What can you tell us?” Hannah asked. 

“Hmm… well, since it’s only you three, I can say… three things!” Monokuma said, “Take notes. First thing! I was made by a team of people. Secondly… there’s so, so many versions of me! And finally… I am not the Mastermind myself!” 

“Eh?” Grell asked with a frown, “What do you mean?” 

“Claude was right! I’m a free-thinker, yet an ally of the Mastermind!” Claude seemed pleased with himself. 

“So that’s all you can say?” Claude asked. 

“Yup! I’m gonna leave now. You guys are boring for just wanting to ask some questions and I’m, frankly, sickened by the hope here.” With that, Monokuma left. 

“What is this hope and despair nonsense that we’ve been talking about?” Grell asked. Claude and Hannah glanced at one another, each with a pensive frown on their faces. 

“Surely one of you can explain it to me,” Grell sighed. 

“Well… Hope is, I imagine, what will help us get out of this wretched game alive,” Hannah said. 

“And despair… well, that’s surely what will make us turn on one another, causing us to participate in the killing game.” 

“That’s what would make us kill, then? Despair?” Grell asked. 

“I can only imagine as such,” Claude said. 

“Then we must keep hope high,” Hannah said, “I fear that we will all surely fall victim to the Mastermind’s fantasies if we don’t.” The others agreed with a simple nod. And yet, something in Grell told her that doing so was easier said than done, that giving into despair was much easier than staying hopeful; killing off each other would be easier overall and would give one of them the chance to leave sooner. But what if believing in hope gave more of them escape? What if they could beat the Mastermind with hope? Only time would tell. 


	13. Bullets in a Loaded Gun: Daily Life, Night 2

It was 9:30 PM and Claude was doing dishes. They had started to pile up despite Claude having done them consistently. Alois walked in on him doing them. 

“You know the dining hall’s gonna close soon, right?” he asked Claude. Claude only nodded in response. Alois frowned at him, then smirked. 

“So you’re just gonna continue cleaning?” he asked. 

“Of course. No one else does, anyways,” he said, “Not even the ‘Ultimate Butler’.” He said this in a slightly mocking way, which made Alois laugh. 

“Come on. I wanted to actually join you guys in the rec room.” 

“I’ll join up with you guys once I’m done. Just take one of the coolers I set down with you.” Alois frowned at him before walking away. Claude let out a soft sigh of relief. He tuned out the rest of the world, able to catch his breath. He even missed the nighttime announcement. 

At 10:03 PM, Claude was done with the dishes and was very proud of himself. However, as he walked to the door, cooler in tow, he couldn’t open the doors. He set the cooler down and pulled on them again, but they were locked, of course. He sighed and looked at the clock. 

“...Shit,” he murmured to himself. He couldn’t believe that he of all people would get stuck in the dining hall. Was that against the rules, being in the dining hall during night? Was that why it was locked? Claude looked through all the rules in the e-handbook. 

There was no rule that explicitly stated that you couldn’t be in the dining hall, only that the dining hall doors would be locked at night. Claude sighed and sat down in a chair before glancing at the cooler. He opened it up and grabbed a beer before looking around at the security cameras. He seemingly pondered who could be watching him before someone knocked on the door. He stood up just to realize that Will was on the other side, smiling at him. He frowned, his brows furrowed, yet he didn’t look Will in the eye. As he approached the door, he managed to hear Will mock him. 

“Well, I clearly can’t get out, so there’s no point in rubbing it in,” Claude said. Will laughed at him. 

“What were you even doing?” 

“I was cleaning because no one else does.” Will said nothing to that. 

“...Well, are you going to be okay in there?” he asked at last.

“Trust me, I’ll be fine. I certainly don’t need you worrying about me.” Will said nothing once more before leaving. Claude assumed that the others would be just fine without him. He was lucky that he managed to bring a couple of things to entertain himself with. The only challenge was staying awake. That was a rule for sure; if he fell asleep, he would surely be punished. As he started to play solitaire, he began to feel at ease. Some true time away from the others without anyone being able to interrupt it was a good thing for him. Once he was on his third game on solitaire, someone knocked on the door. He frowned and looked over. His eyes immediately narrowed. 

“What do you want?” he asked Monokuma. Monokuma only stared before waving at him. Claude sighed and walked back to his seat, but Monokuma would not leave him alone. Claude tried to ignore the feeling of being watched, his body certainly showed how anxious he was; he bounced his leg up and down, his brow furrowed. Eventually, everything felt normal. Claude looked over and let out a sigh of relief. No Monokuma. 

For a while, Claude was content with being in the dining hall. He didn’t feel tired at all and didn’t get bored of playing solitaire. In fact, he was pretty content with his situation. That was until he heard voices, of course. He then glanced at the clock; it was 2 AM. Claude quickly slunk back over to the doors to listen to the conversation. 

“So… who’re you thinking about?” Nina asked. 

“...Sieglinde,” Mey-Rin said rather stoically. 

“Nooo,” Nina said, “Come on, what about… what about any of the guys?” 

“It’d be suspicious,” Mey-Rin replied, shaking her head, “Ciel isn’t an option. Nor is Sebastian or Will. It’d be too… convenient for us. Too suspicious.”

“...What about Claude?” Nina asked. 

“...It’s possible,” Mey-Rin said. Claude then heard her cock her gun. He made sure neither of them could see him. He saw his stuff on the table, but he didn’t have time to get rid of it. The two ladies looked into the dining hall. 

“Huh,” Nina said, “Someone left their stuff.” Mey-Rin simply nodded. Claude felt his heartbeat quicken, but he managed to stay calm. 

“I imagine that there was a reason the Mastermind let me keep my guns,” Mey-Rin said, “Perhaps we should just take over entirely.” 

“Maybe!” Nina said, “Or we could just get Claude and-” 

“No. Think about it,” Mey-Rin said, “If I get Sieglinde and you get someone else, then perhaps we’ll both become Blackened. You can get Claude if you want. If we can survive the trial, then maybe we both can leave.” 

“... I suggested that earlier and you said nothing,” Nina sighed. 

“I was trying to figure out the rules myself. I’m sorry,” Mey-Rin said. 

“But… that seems like a good plan,” Nina said, “Very well. We’ll do this tomorrow?” 

“Yes. I’ll meet up with you by noon. I’ll have killed her by then.” 

“How will I… get… Claude?” 

“Simple.” Claude heard some shuffling, then heard Nina gasp.

“Really?” she asked, “Are you sure?” There was silence, but Claude assumed that Mey-Rin was nodding. 

“I’m sure. Besides… I have a way to pin the blame on Ciel and Sebastian.” 

“Really??” Again, some silence followed before Mey-Rin continued. 

“Those two usually work together. Sieglinde and Claude are good choices because both were close to them, and you can certainly reason out why they’d kill both of them. And… Because of how Ciel easily assumed the leadership role out of all of us… we can pinpoint him as the Mastermind.” 

“Do you think he’s actually the Mastermind?” 

“It’s not important whether or not he actually is, but if anyone were to be the Mastermind…” Claude thought about that. Ciel as the Mastermind? It was possible, but what about his reaction to Lizzy’s death? If anything, Ciel was leading the group because of his position in society and his overall attitude. He didn’t have an obnoxious superiority complex like Will nor was too lax like Ronald. Ciel was… Ciel. He was Ciel Phantomhive, the Ultimate Watchdog. 

“Right,” Nina said at last, “Well, let’s go to the bath house!” 

“Huh?” Mey-Rin asked, “Uh… sure! If you want.” Claude slowly stood up as they started to walk away. He saw them walk into the bath house’s dressing room before walking back to his seat. He held his head in his hand as he finished off his beer. They were planning to kill him. A smile slowly spread across his face. They certainly weren’t going to kill him if he had any say in it.

  
  


Monokuma Lesson #13: Nothing good ever happens after 2 AM. 

  
  


“Gooood morning students! Everything has been opened up once again. Let’s give today your best positive attitudes!” Monokuma announced. Claude immediately left the dining hall and headed to his bedroom. If Nina still wanted to kill him, this would’ve been the time to do it. However, he safely made it to his bedroom and locked the door. He wanted to collapse right there, but he managed to take himself to his bed before he quickly fell asleep. 


	14. Bullets in a Loaded Gun: Daily Life, Morning 3

Everyone but Claude and Soma was eating breakfast. Alois had joined Ciel and the others rather than sitting next to Hannah. 

“Claude got stuck in here last night,” he had told them all with a sadistic smile. 

“I’m surprised that he made it through the night,” Sebastian had quipped. But now wasn’t the time to think about Claude; Ciel and Sieglinde were far too focused on the occasional stares that Mey-Rin would give them. 

“It’s totally weird,” Alois said, “Maybe it’s about yesterday?”

“Maybe,” Ciel said with a nod, “About the meeting?” Alois nodded. Sebastian and Wolfram looked at one another. They then looked at Mey-Rin. Something seemed off, that’s for sure. And what about Claude? How did they know for sure that he was sleeping in his bedroom? 

“Look, they’re leaving,” Sieglinde whispered. Indeed, Nina and Mey-Rin left breakfast rather early. 

“It’s not too odd,” Ciel shrugged. 

“What if they’re up to something?” Alois asked. 

“I doubt that,” Sebastian replied quickly, “It’d be too suspicious.” Wolfram stared at him. Was he that sure? 

“Well, I’m certainly keeping my guard up,” he said. 

“You’re really convinced they’d plan something? I see no point in doing so,” Seb replied.

“Maybe they’re just gonna go fuck,” Alois said with a smirk. As breakfast winded down to a close, Alois stayed with Seb and Wolfram. 

“...Can you two come with me to check up on Claude?” Alois asked them, “I don’t want a repeat of… the Agni incident. I definitely don’t want to be cooped up in my room.” Seb looked at him disapprovingly but both men agreed. They reached Claude’s room - it was right next to Seb’s room, oddly enough - and Alois knocked. 

“Yes?” Claude asked. 

“It’s me,” Alois sighed. Claude hesitantly opened the door before letting them all in. He quickly locked the door as they all sat down on his bed.

“You seem uptight. Did you get any sleep at all?” Alois asked. 

“...I was asleep before you woke me up,” Claude sighed, “Honestly, how could I make such a mistake?” 

“...It’s pretty easy,” Wolfram assured him, “I mean, your cleaning doesn’t go unnoticed.” Seb frowned at this. He was cleaning, too! Was that just expected of him because he’s the Ultimate Butler? 

“Well, I appreciate it, but I’d prefer if you all hurry with what you wanted to say so I can go back to sleep,” Claude said before stifling a yawn. 

“... I just wanted to check up on you,” Alois said, a small yet concerned frown forming. 

“...Thank you,” Claude said before glancing at his glasses; they were resting on a bedside table. He was surprised that he actually remembered to take them off. 

“... Say, Claude,” Seb said before standing up, “Did anything weird happen while you were in the dining hall?” Claude stared at him, trying to read his facial expression. Seb was smiling, but he was clearly just scoping for information; he certainly didn’t care about Claude’s well-being. 

“Yes,” he sighed, “Well… first and foremost, Monokuma pestered me. I suppose that’s not weird, though. He was just giving me a hard time, I’m sure.” 

“Anything else?” Alois asked with a smile, laughing at the idea of the bear messing with Claude. 

“... Nina plans to kill me,” Claude said. Alois’ eyes widened. 

“What?!” he asked before springing up from the bed, “I’ll kill her myself before she does that!” 

“There is no need for you to do so,” Claude said, “Nina and Mey-Rin did not account for someone listening to them on their way to the bathhouse. If I expose this info, then their plans will be foiled. It’s as simple as that.” 

“...So Sieglinde was right to be wary,” Wolfram murmured before quickly standing up, “Excuse me. I must go watch over her now.” 

“Of course,” Claude said before letting him out. He locked the door once more. 

“You do certainly seem paranoid,” Seb said with a smirk. Alois glared at him. 

“He has every right to be paranoid! How dare you even say that?! His life is being threatened, he-” 

“Now, now, calm down! I was just being coy,” Sebastian said. Alois continued to glare at him. 

“Enough,” Claude said, “I’ll be fine if I stay in here with the door locked. Once I’ve completely rested, I’ll be able to defend myself.” 

“...Alright,” Alois said before looking at him, “Please stay safe! You’re all that I have.” Claude simply nodded. 

“I will stay safe,” he said before letting him out. That just left Claude face-to-face with Sebastian. 

“...Are you sure they aren’t the Masterminds of this game?” Seb asked with a pleased smile on his face. Claude simply stared at him. 

“... I don’t think so,” Claude said at last. Seb, still seemingly pleased with himself, left Claude alone. Claude fell back onto his bed and stared at the ceiling until he drifted off to sleep once again. 

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry that this chapter is super short! I'm expecting that the following chapters will be longer (hint hint), so bear with me! Thanks for reading this far! Tell me what you think in the comments/give me kudos or hmu on tumblr at theatmmmmm (if you want, of course). Shout outs to CheetoFlavoredCake on here and tumblr for posting about my fic! Hope you and your friends still like it!


	15. Bullets in a Loaded Gun: Daily Life, Afternoon 3

Wolfram had caught up with Sieglinde around 9 AM and hadn’t left her side since, despite her protests. 

“I have to stay with you. I cannot let you leave my sight,” he explained as they sat in the garden. 

“What makes this day any different from the others?” she asked, a small pout on her face. 

“Because…,” Wolfram drifted, unsure of what to tell her, “Because I fear that you’re in great danger.” Sieglinde pressed for an explanation. 

“Does it have to do with Mey-Rin?” she asked at last. Wolfram slowly nodded.

“She and Nina are planning something… according to Claude,” he said. Sieglinde stopped pouting to smirk. 

“That man could probably lie right through his teeth no problem. I doubt that it’s real.” 

“Well, you see… He was real panicked because he heard Nina say that she’d kill him.” 

“...And what would Mey-Rin do?” Wolfram had no answer to that. 

“Please, just… just let me protect you today, and if nothing happens, I’ll be more lenient. I just cannot afford losing you.” 

“...Okay,” she complied, “I understand that it’s really bothering you. I’ll let you protect me, even if I can hold my ground.” Wolfram glanced at her wheelchair before glancing back up at her. It wouldn’t inhibit her one bit, but after stubbornly using her crutches for so long, he wondered if she’d be weaker than usual. He doubted it, but something in the back of his mind told him to be cautious. So, he continued to keep watching over her, enjoying some tea and simulated fresh air and sunlight. 

Eventually, Sieglinde needed to use the restroom. She told Wolfram this and he looked nervous, but he agreed to let her go. However, as she was just about to leave, he leaped over to her. 

“Sieglinde!” Wolfram shouted before pushing her out of the way. She yelped and heard something fly by them. She slowly looked up at Wolfram, who was staring at the top of the chicken coop. He then ran out of the garden in hot pursuit of… someone? Something? Sieglinde started to follow after him, but he immediately told her to stay put. Instead, she decided to find Ciel. However, she noticed something; there was a tiny bit of blood on the ground. She checked her body for any wounds. Nothing. She then realized that there were more droplets that followed Wolfram’s path. She rushed to Ciel immediately, switching to her crutches without a doubt in her mind. However, she found Ciel as he was approaching her. 

“I saw Wolfram following someone,” he said. Sieglinde nodded frantically. 

“Let me help-” 

“NO!” she shouted, “We need to hurry. He’s hurt.” 

“That's why I want to help you,” Ciel said. Sieglinde shook her head before leaving without him. He had to catch up with her. 

“I got it. I’ve been walking with these crutches for over seven years now. I’ve got the arm strength to prove it,” she said to him as he finally caught up with her. 

“Got it.” He made sure to keep note of that as they hurried down the stairs to the second floor. There was absolutely no blood on this floor nor the third floor. 

“...Maybe he found something to patch the wound with,” Ciel said, “It probably wasn’t that serious.” Sieglinde reluctantly agreed. They skipped the library - Ciel had come from there - and headed to the classrooms. Absolutely nothing. They headed to the pool and went through their respective locker rooms to cover more ground. And when they met back up… nothing. 

“Where is he?” Sieglinde asked, fear ingrained in her voice at this point. They walked back out to the hallway. That’s when Wolfram appeared before them, looking very stressed. His sweat-glistened forehead had a smudge of blood on it. 

“I’m okay,” he told Sieglinde, who immediately hugged him and started bawling. 

“Don’t scare me like that!” she said. Wolfram and Ciel looked at one another. 

“What happened?” Ciel asked him.

“Someone tried to shoot Sieglinde. I was grazed by it instead.” 

“...Who was it?” Ciel asked for clarification, brows slightly furrowed. 

“A woman,” Wolfram said vaguely. 

“There are only four other women here, who was it?” 

“Oh, that doesn’t matter!” Sieglinde said, “He’s okay, and she’s not gonna try it again.” 

“That’s right,” Wolfram quickly replied, then hesitated to follow up with an explanation, “... I had a stern talk with her.” 

“That’s all?” Ciel asked, confusion and frustration coming out in his words. But he didn’t want to press the duo any more, as they already seemed happy to be reunited. Ciel decided to grab some lunch. All things considered, a crisis was avoided; he’d just have to follow up later. Given everything, he assumed that it was Mey-Rin, but how could he be so sure? And since when did they have any access to guns? Wouldn’t that defeat the point of a killing game in a setting like this where much more creative deaths could be crafted? 

_We really have to stop thinking like that_ , he thought as he shook his head. 

  
  


Monokuma Lesson #14: Go with your gut instinct! 

Well, unless it’s completely wrong. 

  
  


Claude was awake at last, enjoying some lunch with Hannah and Grell. It’s always spectators who notice the chemistry certain couples have before the couples themselves. Even though Claude could cut the sexual tension with a knife, he said nothing about it, even if he and Hannah were no longer a thing. It’d be weird if he tried to push them to date one another, especially in this situation. It was refreshing to see someone that wasn’t him be kind to Hannah. She wasn't disliked; she, like Alois, was misunderstood. Annafellows was often depicted as a loner botanist, one who’d defend the Ultimate Butterfly to the ends of the earth. Claude knew that her typical description was only one side of her; she was sweet, gentle, and very, very understanding. Perhaps she was too understanding; that’s what got them both entangled in the life of Alois Trancy. 

“Claude,” she called his name, “Are you sure you got enough sleep?” His golden eyes stared into her dark blue eyes.

“I’m fine,” he replied, “Trust me.” 

“Well, you’re spacing out,” Grell said, a deep scowl on her face, “Join the conversation, will you?” Claude said nothing to that, managing to listen to their conversation, occasionally replying. Truthfully, he just didn’t know what to say to either of them. That was when Alois joined them. Grell immediately looked displeased. 

“Where have you been?” Hannah asked with a soft smile. Alois giggled in response. 

“Oh, I was just looking for a book in the library,” he replied. Claude and Grell narrowed their eyes as they stared at him. 

“Did you find what you were looking for?” Hannah asked, completely oblivious to the others’ suspicion. 

“Yes. I’m keeping it in my room for now.” 

“Sounds like a good idea,” Hannah replied, still smiling. Grell and Claude exchanged glances, but did nothing about it. Even as they left to do other things, neither of them checked the library. 

  
  


Monokuma Lesson #15: Okay: If you think your gut’s 

wrong, you should at least try and prove it wrong.

  
  


Ciel was finally heading back to the library, Sieglinde and Wolfram right behind him. As he quickly opened the door like usual, he realized that the light was off. He flipped it back on and could only stare at what was before him. Wolfram stared into the room with wide eyes, hands shaking. All Sieglinde was able to do was scream at the sight. 

Mey-Rin was hung from the ceiling. Well, that wasn’t exactly what was happening; she was battered and bruised, her eyes gouged out. She was also left nude, which only showed off more of her injuries. Her neck certainly looked broken, almost like it had been snapped. Her wrists and ankles were bound with rope, but there was surrounding rope arranged into a pattern that anyone could recognize right away. 

Mey-Rin was trapped in a spider’s web. 

“A body has been discovered!” Monokuma announced, “You will now be able to investigate! After a certain amount of time, the class trial will begin!” 

Ciel continued to stare, even when the others gathered. Even when Nina let out the most horrific scream - similar to the wails of La Llorona - he just stared. Sebastian shook him back to the present. 

“It’s time to investigate,” he whispered. 

“Indeed,” Ciel spoke in a shuddery whisper. Monokuma appeared before the group. 

“Well, here we are once again!” he said with that cheerful voice of his. Aside from the bear, there were a select few ignoring Nina’s wails; Ciel, Sebastian, Alois, and Undertaker were staring at Monokuma. 

“Here’s what you’ve been waiting for,” he said before handing Ciel the second Monokuma File, “Take a good look at it!” He then disappeared, leaving them all to do as they pleased. A majority of the group helped Nina leave Mey-Rin’s body despite the protest. Alois saw her surprisingly clinging onto Claude. He frowned at the sight.

He wished that she had died instead of Mey-Rin.


	16. Bullets in a Loaded Gun: Deadly Life, Investigation

**INVESTIGATE!**

The very first thing Ciel did was look through the Monokuma File. 

**_Monokuma File #2:_ **

_“The victim was only known as Mey-Rin. She passed in the hallway at exactly noon. The cause of death was a snapped neck. Her leg had been severely fractured during death and there are multiple scratches, cuts, and bruises scattered on her body.. Additionally, Mey-Rin was found by the other students in a precarious situation; more bones were broken after she passed, her eyes were gouged out, and her body was strung up in a meticulous manner, one that looked like a spider’s web.”_

“What a strange way to… wait,” Ciel said, “So… she didn’t die in this position. Who would even do this, then?” Would the killer be that sadistic to humiliate her after death? Even Wolfram, the man that fought in wars, was beyond shocked to see her corpse set up in such a way. 

Ciel glanced at the clock, noticing how it was 1:35 PM. 

“Huh… so she died an hour and a half ago?” he asked himself. He didn’t realize that Alois was the only one still there, just staring at the body. 

“Sure did,” Alois said. Ciel glanced at him. 

“I can read over your shoulder, you know. You’re shorter than me.” 

“...Right,” Ciel sighed, “What do you think happened?” 

“Hmm? You’re asking me?” Ciel just gave him a look. Alois sighed, seemingly unamused. 

“I personally think that her death and how she was set up seems… disjointed,” Alois theorized. 

“...I completely agree. After all, there’s no blood anywhere near her, even though there should definitely be some.” 

“Hm?” Alois asked with a surprised look on his face.

“You’d expect blood with her injuries, wouldn’t you? I mean, for Christ’s sake, her bones are exposed.” Alois stared at him. 

“So where did the blood go?” Ciel asked himself. Alois sighed and simply walked away; he certainly wasn’t going to deal with this. Ciel decided to walk back to the garden to check on the blood Wolfram left behind. As he walked down the third floor, that’s when he noticed it; a few drops that hadn’t been cleaned up were still present. He then glanced up at the security camera. 

“I suppose having access to the footage and some proper tools would make this all too easy, but it’d be appreciated,” Ciel quipped to the camera, hoping that the Mastermind was listening to him. He made a mental note of the blood before continuing his journey. Once he came upon the garden, he realized something; Wolfram’s blood was gone, too. Did he wipe it up? Did someone else clean it up? Who would even do that? 

That’s when Ciel developed a theory. He immediately ran off to find Sieglinde, who was in the rec room, clinging onto Wolfram. Despite Ciel’s silence on the issue, he wished that Wolfram would give them some time alone. 

“I believe someone - possibly the killer - moved her body,” Ciel explained to them, “And then cleaned up the evidence.” 

“Why bother with that?” Wolfram asked, “I mean… if you really think about it… Uhhhh-” 

“It’d only make sense for the killer to do any of that,” Sieglinde interrupted him. 

“Right,” he quickly nodded. Ciel said nothing. Doubt spread from the dark corners of his mind to the rest of his brain. Could they have done it? After all, they were the ones that Mey-Rin was after. Did they lash out in retaliation? But if that were true, which one of them actually killed her?

“Ciel?” Sieglinde asked, “Are you okay?” Ciel snapped out of his thoughts and quickly nodded. 

“Yes… Yes, I’m fine,” he said. He then left, deciding that he had more to do, yet all he could think about was how Mey-Rin was strung up. 

_Caught in a spider’s web… could this be a clue?_ He asked himself as he continued to walk. This was when he found Claude watching over Nina in the Nurse’s Office. He knocked on the door and Claude waved him in.

“Do you need something?” He asked him. Nina was sniffling, staring down at the ground. 

“Uh… I wanted to talk to Nina, if that’s alright,” Ciel told him.

“Of course.” Claude simply left, standing out in the hall. Ciel sat down across from Nina, who couldn’t even look at him. After some coercion, Nina gave him her statement.

“...Mey-Rin and I… we were both going to become Blackened. We agreed that we’d meet up at noon after we killed our respective targets. But… I couldn’t kill Claude. I was physically unable to, both because he had stayed in his room and because I was having second thoughts. But… when she didn’t meet up with me… I knew something was wrong. I looked everywhere for her, hoping that she’d show up, but I couldn’t find her, and then…” 

“And then?” Ciel asked. 

“We all found her,” Nina said, arms folded over her chest as she leaned forward. 

“... What exactly is your relationship with Mey-Rin?” He asked her. Nina looked up at him for once. 

“I loved her,” she said, “I loved her a lot. I don’t know how much she loved me, but… I really, truly love her.” Ciel nodded and took note of that. 

“I don’t understand it... ,” Nina sighed, “Well. I do. Maybe… maybe Sieglinde and Wolfram caused her death.” Ciel frowned, trying to push his doubts out of his head. 

“I… It’s a possibility,” he said, “However, I was with those two from noon to when we discovered her.” But the Monokuma File said she died at noon exactly, right? It only gave them alibis in terms of possibly moving the body, not her actual death. Anyone could have done it, though. 

_Come to think of it… Did any of us see each other?_ He thought to himself, _Sieglinde, Wolfram, and I were together. Were the others in groups? Does this predicament even make me a suspect?_

Claude walked back into the room, assuming that the two were done talking. 

“Do you need any more help?” Claude asked. Ciel suddenly realized that Claude was caring for the woman that wanted to kill him. Did he know? 

“No. Thank you, though,” she said as she stood up, “Ciel, I’m going to figure out who has alibis and who doesn’t. I am going to avenge Mey-Rin’s death, so help me God!”

“You do that,” Ciel replied hesitantly. The two men watched her leave. 

“...Claude,” Ciel began to ask, “I assume you were in your room all day?” 

“Indeed. And yes, I was aware of her plans this entire time,” he said, “I stayed in my room until a little after noon. Not only was I sleeping, but I, admittedly, was concerned.” 

“It’s certainly something to be concerned about,” Ciel replied, a small smile crossing his face, “Who do you think did it?” 

“...What a bold question from you,” Claude quipped as he glanced over at him, “... I told Sebastian, Alois, and Wolfram. Do what you will with that info.” Ciel immediately understood what he meant. 

As Ciel tried to find Sebastian, he wondered when Nina would return with the alibis. Or would she even give him them? That wasn’t clear in his mind. What was clear was the announcement that played throughout the school. 

“STUDENTS! It’s time to gather at the elevator once more. The class trial will begin soon!” Ciel let out a soft sigh. The Mastermind always ended the investigation prematurely, given how he needed more time to truly figure out who did it.

As he made his way to the elevator, he knew that he was less confident in the evidence than in the previous case. Even though he hadn’t expected Lizzy to be the Blackened, all the information made sense once all laid out. Would this case be left to chance? Would they all just get lucky? 

“There you are!” Sebastian said with a smile on his face, “I was busy dealing with Soma and Wolfram all day. Soma was having terrible issues with trauma and Wolfram… I assume he was, too.” Indeed, Soma looked downcast, completely silent and alone. Wolfram looked terrified as he tugged on his shirt’s collar. 

“Noted,” Ciel said to him, “Let’s get this settled- where were you during the actual death?” 

“Oh, I assume you think that that’s all that matters,” Seb said with a small laugh.

“Excuse me?” 

“Well, we have to consider how we found Mey-Rin. That poor girl… I really do feel just awful for her. We’re trapped here with some twisted soul.”

“Enough,” Ciel spoke with a sharp tongue, “I’m asking for an alibi for around noon.” 

“...I don’t have one,” Sebastian said, “Well, I don’t have one that matters; I was swimming with no one else.” 

“You were swimming??” Ciel asked. 

“Yes… then we found the body, and then I had lunch-” 

“You ate AFTER we found her?!” 

“Yes?” Ciel could only sigh. That was the end of their conversation, for the group collectively made their way onto the elevator. As they all headed down, Ciel could only stare at Sieglinde. She didn’t do this, right? If so, then who did? 

  
  


Monokuma Lesson # 16: Sometimes - and only sometimes - the

most obvious answer is correct. 

  
  


“Welcome to the new and improved courtroom!” Monokuma said with a big grin, “What do you think?” The courtroom looked completely different. What had once looked like an ode to Agni and his culture was now a room with black wooden panels for walls, red curtains covering certain walls. That’s when Ciel noticed the key detail; imprinted on all of the curtains represented an organization’s symbol. 

“This symbol belongs to… who Mey-Rin worked for?” Ciel asked Monokuma. 

“Yup, yup, yup!” He replied cheerfully, “Now… let the class trial begin!” 


	17. Bullets in a Loaded Gun: Deadly Life, Class Trial

“I want to go over the exact events of what happened,” Will said. 

“That’s not needed. I’ll just share a quick summary,” Claude intervened. 

“Excuse me?” Will asked, immediately offended, “I wanted to go about this as usual-” 

“This is not anything like the last case,” Claude said with the shake of his head, “So let me explain what happened. While trapped in the dining hall, I heard Mey-Rin and Nina go over their plans to both become Blackened at the same time - a rather foolish plan, might I add - by killing both Sieglinde and myself.” 

“What?” Sieglinde asked, shocked.

“Was that not obvious this whole time?” Claude asked rather smugly, “After I was allowed out, I stayed in my room until a little after noon. Unable to kill me, Nina waited for Mey-Rin as they agreed during their planning. Mey-Rin, I assume, was out to kill Sieglinde. Sieglinde, Wolfram… what happened on your end?”

“Right. I’ll admit this now… Mey-Rin had tried to shoot Sieglinde,” Wolfram said. Everyone seemed shocked.

“She really did that?” Ronald asked, “Damn… how did she even get a gun?” 

“The Mastermind gave them to her,” Nina said, “According to her, at least.” 

“I went after her and gave her a stern warning,” Wolfram continued, “And then I retrieved Ciel and Sieglinde.” 

“Correct,” Ciel said with a nod, “We all went to the library around one-thirty PM and that’s when we found Mey-Rin. Is there anything else that needs to be said?” 

“I just want to put out that I should have a large voice in this case,” Claude sighed, “My life was threatened by both Mey-Rin and Nina, after all.” 

“Hold on,” Ciel said, “Stop right there. According to both you and Nina, Nina only planned to kill you. Mey-Rin wanted to kill Sieglinde.” 

“...And? I know the most about what they were planning. And… I told Sebastian, Wolfram, and Alois about this,” Claude said. 

“So… they’re our suspects?” Ronald asked aloud. 

“Absolutely not!” Claude refuted.

“No, that… that actually makes sense,” Ciel said, “I certainly didn’t know… No one else but those people knew about Mey-Rin’s plans. Unless the killer got lucky and just happened to kill Mey-Rin, then it’d had to be Alois, Claude, Sebastian, or Wolfram.”

“That makes zero sense,” Claude said, hand son his hips, “Honestly, if you just let me take over this case-” 

“Where’s your evidence?” Ciel quickly asked. Claude was about to speak, but Ciel cut him off. 

“Exactly,” Ciel said, “I am the one with the evidence, I am the Ultimate Watchdog, and I, as expressed by everyone else, will be leading these class trials.” At first, there was silence. And then… 

“You’re joking, right?” Claude said, revealing a long tongue. Everyone seemed aghast, including Ciel. 

“I-” 

“You’re just trying to just shove me aside because of your own superiority complex!” 

“What-” 

“If you don’t let me take over, we’re never going to figure out who. Killed. Mey-Rin! If you want to take a wild shot in the dark, you’re going to have to go through me at the very least! None of us want you to use what little evidence you have just to blame someone innocent.”

“... How did you-” 

“Ha! So you really don’t have as much evidence as you think you do.” 

“That’s not what I’m saying. What I’m saying is-” 

“Silence!! Let. Me. Speak,” Claude said while pointing at him. Ciel didn’t want to point out the irony of that request. 

“What’s wrong with him??” Nina asked. 

“That’s just… him. It’s not a part of him that he shows often, but it’s really not worrying,” Hannah said. 

“That’s awful!” Sieglinde said. 

“I don’t know… He’s kinda fun,” Grell said a little dreamily. Undertaker laughed loudly. 

“Agreed! He’s quite the character now!” he replied. 

“I bet you don’t even have a working theory,” Claude said, “I bet you don’t even know where everyone was before, during, and after her death! None of you do!” 

Ciel sighed, “Actually-” 

“Well, here’s what I’ve theorized! Based on everything, the killer had to both kill her and string her up. It only makes sense. If we’re to go with your silly little idea of narrowing down the suspects… who’d be most likely to do it? Alois certainly wouldn’t have bothered, Sebastian was off swimming, but… Wolfram. You were the one who had something to gain from killing her!” 

“What?!” Wolfram asked, “No, I don’t!” 

“You were protecting Sieglinde, you fool!” Claude spat, “With Mey-Rin gone, Sieglinde’s life wouldn’t be endangered, right?” 

“I told you, I only talked to her after that,” Wolfram said, “I would never kill!” 

“So you think Wolfram did it,” Ciel sighed. What a twisted way to sort of agree with him. 

“Absolutely!” Claude said, his long tongue still on display.

“... I was thinking the same,” Ciel said, “But I don’t think Wolfram has the heart to do something that cruel to her.” 

“You don’t think so?” Claude laughed, “I absolutely think he does! He’s the Ultimate Lieutenant! AKA… He’s involved with the military! Surely he’s committed a war crime, right?!” 

“How dare you!” Wolfram said through tears, “I have never, ever done something that cruel while serving! That is a beyond despicable thing to accuse me of! The German military has never, ever done that during my time of service!” 

Sieglinde jumped to Wolfram’s defense, “Exactly! First off! Wolfram wouldn’t have even killed her! A killer wouldn’t cry while being accused of murder! I know Wolfram better than all of you here. He. Wouldn’t. Kill!” Claude laughed. 

“Please, don’t embarrass yourself. The sooner we can figure out how and why he did this, the sooner we can leave this class trial!” 

“Wolfram didn’t set-up Mey-Rin’s body!” Ciel shouted, “Why do you think he did?!” 

“Because it’s the only thing that makes sense! Who could lift up a dead body and set it up in a precarious situation in one hour?” 

“...Any of us!” Ciel countered, “Mey-Rin was light and short. You don’t need to have Wolfram’s strength to do something this despicable.” Claude seemed aghast at the suggestion. 

“I refuse to believe that!” he declared. That was when Ciel smirked. 

“Well, how about this,” Ciel suggested, “Let’s say... hypothetically… you killed Mey-Rin.” 

Claude looked beyond shocked, “...What?!” 

“That makes much more sense than the Wolfram theory,” Will said. 

“Forget hypotheticals!” Grell said with a slight grin, “He definitely did it!” Ciel held his hand out as a way to silence everyone before he continued.

“Let’s reference the first trial. Wolfram confirmed this fact: You, Wolfram, and Agni are the strongest here. Based on your logic, that makes you a suspect. You knew about Nina and Mey-Rin’s plans  _ and _ you’re strong enough to both kill and move her.” 

“You certainly have a mind twisted enough to do that to Mey-Rin after you killed her,” Will agreed with the working theory. Ciel felt more confident in this theory than the one about Wolfram. Could Claude really have done it? Was that why he wanted to control the trial? 

“And… about the spider web… I’ve watched enough of your movies to know that you include plenty of spiders and cobwebs.” 

“Claude has an affinity for spiders,” Hannah said with a nod. 

“Exactly,” Ciel continued, “Honestly, I don’t know how you thought this ploy could work, but it’s abundantly clear that you, Claude Faustus, killed Mey-Rin and further humiliated her for your own amusement.” Claude stared at him as if he was stupid. 

“I didn’t do it! You idiot, I was asleep!” 

“As we agreed in the last trial, being asleep is not a decent alibi,” Will said. Claude growled out of frustration. 

“I. Didn’t. Do it. If you all vote for me, you’ll regret it! You’re going to let Wolfram walk free. He-” 

“Alright, enough of this,” Alois said. The courtroom became silent. Claude stared at him, then quickly returned to normal. 

“What do you have to say about all this?” Ciel asked, then realized something, “... The former Earl Trancy - your father - was the Queen’s Spider. It’s only suspicious that she was entangled in a web made of rope. Claude could have done it, but...” 

Silence. 

“...Yes,” Alois said with a nod, “If you’re asking me that I did it, then… yes. I did it.” 

“You killed Mey-Rin?!” Grell asked. 

“I hope your punishment is thoroughly worse than what she endured!” Nina screamed at him, “You little monster!” 

“You guys are such fools,” Alois sighed, “She was dead when I found her.” 

“...So you only moved her body and turned it into a spectacle?” Will asked. 

“Yep!” Alois laughed, “Can’t have a good mystery without a good show! And besides… watching Claude try and protect me was very fun.” Claude was frowning now, clearly disappointed in Alois. 

Sebastian announced, “I’d like to remind you that even though the Mastermind refers to this as a game, Mey-Rin was a living, breathing person. You messed with a crime scene and did something unspeakable to the dead.” 

“I just wanted to add some spice,” Alois shrugged, “And it worked. You’re all soooo confused right now.” 

“I’ll kill you!” Nina shouted, “I surely will!” 

“Save that for later. Let me explain what happened,” Alois sighed, “I knew about Mey-Rin and Nina’s plans. Upset, I wanted revenge, but I certainly wasn’t going to kill either of them. I knew Claude would be just fine! Right, Claude?” Claude said nothing to him; his face was completely emotionless. 

“Well! I was heading to the library, but that’s when I saw quite a bit of blood. I followed the blood up to the third floor. I then realized that the source of the blood was now in the library. I walked back down and entered the library, and that’s when I found Mey-Rin! She was just lying on the ground. I checked if she was breathing, but no dice! She was beyond dead. Her neck and leg was especially fucked up. So… I decided to fuck her up some more.” Nina burst into sobs. 

“Frankly, the way you’re describing this is disturbing,” Will sighed. 

“Sorry! Can’t help being a Scorpio,” Alois quipped, “The first thing I went for were her eyes. I’ve done that before.” 

“You’ve gouged people’s eyes out?!” Ciel asked. 

“Yep!” Alois said with an innocent-looking smile, “I did that because I was surprised the killer hadn’t. Her eyes were her most prized possession, so why not take that from her if you’re going to kill her? Afterward, I proceeded to… take out my frustrations on her.”

“Fucking pardon?” Ronald asked, looking disgusted. 

“Geez, I just kicked her for a bit until she looked bad and I could put her into the position I wanted. What did you think I did?!” 

“That explains the bones broken after death,” Ciel said. 

“Mhm! I then decided to take off her clothes and grab some rope from the garden! As I traveled back and forth, I cleaned up as much blood as I could!” Ciel nodded, for he had wondered when he’d admit to that. 

“Afterwards, I just… Did the best I could to make the rope look like a spider web! I think it all turned out quite nice, don’t you think?” 

“Why?” Nina asked, “Why?!” 

“Why?” Alois asked, suddenly growing serious, “Because without me doing all of that, Mey-Rin would’ve just been a body lying on the ground. Without that, her life would’ve come to such a boring end. That just seems too anticlimactic for the Ultimate Sniper. It was originally for revenge, I won’t lie. But… as I did it, I started to feel proud of myself for giving her one last time to show herself off. In a way, I wanted to make sure she all left an impression on you. It sure did, didn’t it?” 

“... You are beyond just... needing help,” Ciel said, shaking his head. 

“Exactly. This is what I was trying to avoid,” Claude sighed, “I wanted to avoid Alois describing what he did in such a way.” 

“You knew?” Ciel asked. 

“Well, it was either me or Alois who could’ve done that. I’m good at knitting, knotting, and anything involving my hands, but would I do that? Would I string up a body and mess with it? No fucking way,” Claude explained, sounding slightly horrified. Alois giggled. Silence followed afterward. 

“This has been a horrifying experience,” Seb broke the silence, “We now need to figure out who killed Mey-Rin.” 

“Why haven’t we considered Sebastian at all?” Grell asked, “You also knew.” 

“Yes, but I have no need to go after them,” Sebastian said, “Everyone else who knew had reason to.” 

“How do we know that for sure?” Ciel asked him. 

“...CIel, you really don’t think I did this,” Sebastian laughed. 

“I don’t. I just want everyone to feel comfortable,” Ciel said. 

“Maybe Sieglinde killed Mey-Rin?” Ronald suggested, “I do remember seeing Seb completely away from where Mey-Rin was. I even saw him come out of the pool.” 

“Nope,” Ciel immediately said, “She was with me.” 

“Huh. Alright, if you say so,” Ronald said, “It was just a suggestion.” 

“No worries, I understand. So that leaves Wolfram.” Wolfram tugged at his shirt’s collar.

“Right. I’d also like to put in an alibi for when she died,” Alois said, “I set up her body, but I didn’t kill her. Around noon, I was with Hannah.” Hannah nodded. 

“I heard you two,” Soma spoke up, “You were by the dorms, specifically… her dorm.” 

“‘Her dorm’?” Ciel asked. 

“Lizzy’s dorm,” Alois explained. Ciel glanced down at his podium, a frown now ingrained into his face. 

“Alois wanted to pay respects,” Hannah said. 

“Yup. After that, I headed to the library.” Ciel said nothing to that. If they could look into his eyes, they would realize just how vacant they looked. 

“... Ciel?” Seb called out to him. Ciel continued to stare down at his podium. 

“We can’t worry about him right now,” Will sighed, “We have to focus. It seems that everyone has alibis?” 

“Yes!” Nina said, “I checked with everyone, and the only one that I didn’t get to ask was… Wolfram.” All eyes were on Wolfram. 

“I… I was with Sieglinde and Ciel!” 

“Yes, but you were the last one to see her alive,” Will sighed, “Right?” 

“... I suppose so,” Wolfram said, “But I didn’t kill her.” Ciel suddenly shot up. 

“Can you tell us about your outfit tonight?” Ciel asked. 

“Huh?” Ronald asked. Everyone else seemed confused, too. 

“Earlier today, you wore a shirt with the sleeves rolled up. Now you’re wearing a jacket over a different shirt entirely?” 

“Uhhh… It’s called a wardrobe change?” Ronald asked, “What’s so suspicious about his clothes?” 

“Silence,” Will said, “Have any of us changed? No, because we have nothing to hide or no reason to change our clothes midway through the day.” 

“Well, of course Wolfram changed!” Sieglinde said, “He was shot by Mey-Rin!” 

“But he clearly likes to have his sleeves rolled up,” Ciel sighed, “Why keep the sleeves down unless you’re hiding something?” Wolfram had nothing to say to that. 

“Well… let’s see,” Undertaker said, suddenly serious, “Mey-Rin had clearly struggled during her death; with Alois, she couldn’t fight back, but she tried to fight someone. Whoever killed her had to be stronger. They snapped her neck, remember? And broke her leg with a swift kick! You can tell based on how it's broken. So… we just need to find who looks like they’ve been in a scuffle! They should be the true killer.” Immediately, everyone started proving that they had no injuries. Wolfram looked around nervously. Sieglinde looked at him, but she thought that he couldn’t have killed her, even if they had fought. 

“Alright,” Wolfram sighed, “It was more than a stern talk.” He then revealed his arms, which had been cut and dug into. 

“Yikes,” Ronald said, “Looks a bit rough.” 

“So he did do it!” Undertaker announced, “Good call, Claude and Ciel. I admittedly had no clue who it could be.” 

“He didn’t do it!” Sieglinde shouted, “So what if he fought her?! He didn’t kill her!” 

Ciel sighed, “But if she succumbed to injuries he gave her-”

“No! No! Wolfram would never,” Sieglinde defended him, “He didn’t do it. No, no, no!” 

“Sieglinde,” Sebastian tried to calm her down, “It’s okay.” 

“I can prove he didn’t do it!” Sieglinde announced. No one seemed sure about that claim. As she was about to continue, Ciel cut her off.

“How else would Mey-Rin receive the same injuries that Wolfram did, Sieglinde?!” Ciel raised his voice, “They’re clearly there! It’s the most rational, most obvious answer! Wolfram killed her.” Sieglinde stared at him with watery eyes. 

“He… didn’t…,” she started to say before looking up at Wolfram. He slowly shook his head. 

“It’s okay,” he said, “I was only trying to protect you.” Sieglinde continued to stare up at him with wide eyes, even when Monokuma let out a loud, mocking laugh. 

“Wow, this has to be one of the best trials I’ve ever seen!” He announced. 

“Before we vote, is there anything you’d like to say, Wolfram?” Will asked. Wolfram slowly shook his head. 

“I would like to speak after the vote,” he said. 

“Fine, fine. I’ll allow that,” Monokuma said, “Okay everyone, it’s time to vote! Vote for who you think killed Mey-Rin!” Ciel looked at Sieglinde, but she wouldn’t look at anyone. Everyone waited for one last person to vote. And then… 

“Alright! Who got the most votes this time?”

**WHO RECEIVED THE MOST VOTES?**

**…**

**…**

**...**

**WOLFRAM GELZER!**

“Only one person voted for Alois!” Monokuma announced. 

“I thought it was abundantly clear that I didn’t kill her,” Alois sighed. 

“I had to vote for you… Wolfram didn’t do it!” Sieglinde said, “We’re doomed now! There was more to look at, more to investigate-”

“Actually, Wolfram was the Blackened,” Monokuma said. Sieglinde’s eyes widened. Wolfram sighed softly. 

“I was protecting Sieglinde,” he explained, “I didn’t mean to kill her… truly, I didn’t. But I did. We fought because she was trying to kill me. I managed to kick her down before snapping her neck. I know that I should’ve just left her with a broken leg, but I… I had to make sure that she wouldn’t hurt anyone. I killed her on the third floor and moved her to the library so no one would immediately find the body. I wanted to confess this whole time, but I… I didn’t want Sieglinde to shut me down.” He paused briefly.

“I should've confessed. That would’ve made all this easier.” Nina stared at the ground with a scowl on her face. 

“I see myself doing the same for others,” Hannah said, “I could only imagine how much torture you’re going through.” 

“Please, don’t worry about me. I don’t need anyone’s sympathy,” Wolfram said, “What’s done is done. Nina… I’m so sorry for what I did.” 

“Why are you apologizing to a potential murderer?” Alois asked him, frowning. 

“Because I was the one who actually took a life,” Wolfram said. After some silence, Wolfram turned to Monokuma. 

“I’m ready.” 

“Good. Wasn’t waiting for you to say you were, though!” he laughed. 

“ **_IIIIIT’S PUNISHMENT TIME!_ ** ”

  
  


**MUSTARD GAS**

  
  
  


Wolfram was back on the fields, it seemed. Was war afoot? He was completely unaware of what was going on. Fellow men around him only expected him to know, as he’d be one of the main players of their attack. As he was trying to piece everything together, that’s when it happened. At first, the battlefield smelled a sulfury, almost garlicky smell. However, something far worse than mustard gas invaded everyone’s lungs. Wolfram realized what it meant as he started to cough violently. Everyone’s face began to redden and develop blisters, their own lungs only filling with gas, no air. This was a much quicker version of the typical mustard gas, the one and only SuLIN. Wolfram didn’t have time to question how the Mastermind got a hold of the weapon of mass destruction, as he fell to his knees with his fellow men. He clutched the ground, refusing to notice how the others in the game were just watching, unable to do a thing. And yet… something in him refused to give up. He slowly stood up and realized who their opponent was; over 10,000 Monokuma robots were against this troop. Was this… hope versus despair? Had he already fallen to despair by killing Mey-Rin? His mind started to be clouded by pain and pain alone. Slowly but surely, he became weaker and weaker, kneeling on the ground once again. The army of Monokumas didn’t even fire a single bullet before the entire troop passed. 

  
  


**THE BLACKENED HAS BEEN EXECUTED**

Everyone just stared in shock. No one had anything to say. Not even Sieglinde. Monokuma broke the silence with a laugh.

“Wasn’t that just fun?! That honestly felt like I was watching one of those history movies, but a good one!” 

“...That was of my own creation,” Sieglinde said in a catatonic state, “...I made the very thing that killed him. I killed my guardian, my protection. He was my savior, my dearest friend… my father figure.” 

“If that’s how you want to view it!” Monokuma replied, “Well, the trial’s over. You may all head back to the school!” Monokuma left the courtroom. Immediately, Claude and Ciel examined the walls. 

“...What are you two looking for?” Seb managed to croak out. 

“A way to leave,” Ciel said, “A secret passage, a door… something! There has to be more of this school that we’re not allowed into.” However, both gave up after a thorough examination. 

“As I expected… nothing,” Claude sighed. 

“Honestly, I’m still surprised that you two were spot on,” Undertaker said as he approached them, “It’s still all so… odd.” 

“What do you mean?” Ciel asked, “Sometimes the answer’s really obvious.” 

“Yes… But I can’t quite wrap my head around Alois’ motive for doing all that,” Undertaker said. 

“As I’ve said, he has a warped mentality,” Claude sighed, “I don’t believe in using his… health… as an excuse for why he does the things he does.” 

“I hear you,” Undertaker said, “And I agree, but it’s surely a factor, no?” Claude and Ciel looked at one another before Undertaker left with the others. 

“... We’ve lost four people now,” Ciel said, “We must find out who the Mastermind is before anyone else dies.” Claude simply nodded. 

“...Ciel, I apologize for how I acted during the trial. I only wanted to conceal the disturbing truth.” 

“There’s no need to apologize. If there’s unfortunately a next time, I will not allow for such behavior to occur. We must deal with the entire truth during a trial. That is how we save everyone’s lives. I know that you might still think that it was irrelevant, but Wolfram would’ve died with the legacy of doing something that gross to Mey-Rin’s body when he was only protecting Sieglinde.”

“... I am upset that Alois outed himself, actually,” Claude sighed, “Although… I wonder if we would’ve come to the correct conclusion without it.” 

“Most likely, but that’s not the point. The point I’m trying to make is that everyone would look down upon Wolfram if Alois hadn’t confessed. I certainly would’ve.” Claude stared at him, then slowly nodded. 

“I see. That would’ve been very disappointing. My plan was to clear his name after his death, though. However, I suppose that the same outcome would’ve happened no matter what.” 

Ciel replied, “It’s better he died knowing that no one saw him as the man who messed with her body than if he died knowing that everyone saw him as exactly that.” Ciel then started to leave the courtroom. 

“...Ciel?” Claude asked. Ciel stopped walking and turned to look at him. 

“I’m glad that we’re all here with you as our leader. You are a pleasure to work with,” he said. Slightly concerned, Ciel just quickly thanked him before leaving. 

  
  


Monokuma Lesson #17: Flattery works… but only sometimes! 


	18. Gardening and Its Flaws (Death!~☆) : Daily Life, Morning 1

When Ciel woke up and headed into the dining hall, he didn’t expect everyone to be in such high spirits. And yet… everyone was. Even Soma and Sieglinde. He joined the two, but both looked at him with their own special look; Soma looked weary, tired from mourning, while Sieglinde looked wary, paranoid of Ciel and what he could do. 

He greeted them with, “Um… Good morning.” Sieglinde sighed. He had worried about this. Would she blame him for Wolfram’s death? Would she even talk to him again? He couldn’t afford to lose her. 

“... I can’t bring myself to even say that I want to blame you,” Sieglinde admitted to him, “I don’t want to blame you, so… I can’t. I want to still be your friend. I just… I hate being here.”

“I hate it here, too,” Soma agreed, “But… if we escape, we can do it for everyone we lost! We can do it for everyone! We have to!” Sieglinde agreed with him. 

“Oh?” Ciel asked, “How are you feeling?”

Soma replied, “Don’t get it twisted. I am still very upset, but… You seem to have kept strong throughout your whole life. If you can do that and still survive this, then I can do this!” Ciel cocked a brow. Was that a compliment? Whatever it was, Ciel appreciated that both were focused on escape. He was, too. They couldn’t afford another death, another class trial, another loss of someone pushed to their wits end. 

At the other tables, everyone was much more focused on just living. Would that be their downfall? 

“If you say something about us one more time,” Hannah said rather jokingly, a coy smile on her face. Alois frowned and decided to sit by Ciel and the other younger alumni. 

“All I’m saying is that you two would make a fun couple,” Claude said, “Is that such a bad thing?” 

“I’m not saying it’s bad,” Hannah said, “But that’s up to us to make that step. You know that. Right?” 

“I’m just saying,” Claude continued to tease. 

“Enough, enough,” Grell said before looking at Sebastian, Will, Ronald, and Undertaker, “Isn’t it odd that Sebastian and Will are sitting together. I swear, I love both of them, but those two hate each other!”

“I mean, it really depends,” Nina sighed, “We all gotta find allies, right?” 

“... It is odd how we’ve all grouped up without realizing it,” Claude said, “Right, Aloi- Oh.” The group realized that Alois was chatting up with a storm with Ciel, Soma, and Sieglinde. 

“... Interesting,” Claude said as he stared at the group. 

“Well, you don’t mind sitting with us girls, do you?” Nina teased him. 

“What? Of course not,” Claude said as he looked back at the others, not realizing Nina was trying to tease him, “Grell, you actually bring up a fair point: Why is Sebastian not sitting with Ciel?”

“...That’s right!” Grell gasped, “He’s usually with that brat, but yesterday and today, he wasn’t with him at all!” 

“Well, we’ll have to see how today plays out, but I agree that it’s odd,” Hannah murmured.

“Yeah,” Nina agreed, “I… Okay, Hannah, Claude. I have many questions about Alois.”

“Shoot,” Claude said very casually.

“What the fuck is wrong with him?!” She asked, “I mean… come on! How do you even… I don’t… Why did he-”

“It’s best not to upset yourself about what he did,” Hannah told her, “It was awful, yes, but my theory is that Alois was trying to do something to help Mey-Rin.” Nina glared at her. 

“Yeah, I’m gonna say no to that,” Grell sighed, “Even if he was doing it in a twisted way, he didn’t need to brutally kick her, gouge her eyes out, and take off her clothes. He could’ve just tied her up.” Nina looked like she was about to cry. 

“Grell,” Claude warned her. 

“I- Shit!! Sorry!!”

“N-No,”Nina stammered, “It’s fine… Well, what happened isn’t fine, but… you’re okay. Honestly, we need to address exactly what he did.”

“... He gouged out my eye, too,” Hannah admitted, pointing to her right eye.It was only evident now that her right eye was replaced with a glass eye. 

“What?!” Grell and Nina asked, beyond shocked. 

“He really can’t help it,” Hannah said, shaking her head, “Honestly. He lied when he talked about why he did that to her. He really just has a weird fascination with it.” Claude said nothing to that. 

“...Is he okay?” Grell asked, “Like… what happened to him?” 

“That’s private,” Claude replied rather simply, “He would be upset if others knew.” 

“... Right,” Grell said, “Well, let’s hope that he apologizes at least.” 

“That’s highly unlikely, but I don’t even need one at this point,” Nina sighed, “I’m not over it and I will never be over it, but… I just want us to get out of here, you know? I mean we got Junior Detective and Co. trying to figure out an escape plan… what are we doing?” 

“Honestly? I’m trying to make the most out of this,” Claude said, “I mean… being stuck here with all these people running around is way less than desirable, but it’s quite nice if you forget about the murder and try to stay away from others as much as possible.” 

“That’ll make you suspicious during trials, though, right?” Grell asked. 

“Oh, I don’t think a third trial will happen.” 

“Well, that’s very optimistic,” Grell sighed. 

“I don’t think another trial will happen, either,” Hannah said with the shake of her head, “We’ve learned our lesson and know what happens already. We’re not going to kill one another anymore.” 

Nina sighed, “... Maybe. I hope so, anyways. But that’s the thing with the human mind… it can give you plenty of excuses to do things and can make you think you’ll get away with it. Even if it’s murder.” 

“Maybe especially if it’s murder?” Grell asked, “I mean, think about it… The Mastermind is killing off first-time offenders because this is a game. What if they pitted serial killers against one another instead of bringing in innocents?” 

“We’re Ultimates, though,” Claude refuted, “That’s why we’re here. They want to get rid of Ultimates, possibly causing despair while doing so. They’re forming despair in all of us.” 

“Well, when you think like that, of course they are,” Hannah replied, “I’m not letting despair get to me! I will never succumb to despair.” Grell, Nina, and Claude looked at one another. Even with Claude’s theory that no more killing would occur, he still looked leagues more realistic than Hannah. Despair was hard to avoid, while hope was harder to keep. If they all could manage to keep hope in their hearts, that’d be more of a miracle than a Christmas Miracle. 

Monokuma Lesson # 18: Hope? Who needs hope when utter despair

is more abundant than it’s ever been?   
  
  
  



	19. Gardening and Its Flaws (Death!~☆) : Daily Life, Afternoon 1

“Okay!” Alois said once Ciel, Sieglinde, and Soma gathered in the library. They all had tea and some snacks in front of them as well as their plans and other notes. 

“Let’s get started,” he continued. Ciel gestured to the notes on the table. 

“As we’ve said here, our best option as of now is trying to get into the second dormitory floor,” Ciel said, “However, I think we should also focus on trying to get into the data room and the Headmaster’s office.” 

“Agreed,” Soma said with a nod, “I shall investigate how we can get into the Headmaster’s office. I am very charming, you know. I will surely charm the pants off of him.” 

“You know you’re talking about Monokuma, right?” Sieglinde asked him. Soma gasped. 

“What?! That bear is- No!” he replied in shock. Alois rolled his eyes. 

“He said that he was the very first day,” he said, then shook his head, “Honestly, who we’re really dealing with here is whoever is controlling him.” 

“The Mastermind,” Ciel said with a nod. 

“Well! If that’s true, then I’ll surely get on the Mastermind's good side!” Soma said with a big smile on his face. Once again, Alois rolled his eyes. 

“...Can we talk about how you did… that… to Mey-Rin?” Sieglinde asked him. Alois looked at her with a smirk. 

“Not unless you want to talk about Wolfram,” he replied. Sieglinde didn’t say anything back. 

“Stop,” Ciel said, “Let’s focus.” 

“She started it.” 

“I don’t care. Let’s not bring up what the Mastermind made them do. What we need to focus on is outsmarting them.” 

“...Who do you think the Mastermind is? Surely if we’re all trying to plan escape and none of the others are… then it’s one of them,” Soma theorized. Ciel’s eyes widened. 

“Yeah… I can agree with that,” Alois said, “I’m not lame enough to set up all this. Doing something theatrically? Sure. Renting out our stomping grounds just to make us kill one another? Absolutely not. Imagine the costs, the production value…” 

“Production value?” Ciel asked him, “... What if this is all for entertainment?” They all looked at him. 

He continued, “The cameras, the set-up… the class trial. What if this is all for some group’s enjoyment?” 

“... What if the world is watching us?” Sieglinde suggested. Alois laughed at both of them. At first. 

“Come on, that’s ridiculous,” he said, hands on his hips. Then, his face twisted into confusion. He bit his lip and sat down, slowly placing his hands and head in between his legs. Soma stared at them all. 

“If that were true, someone had to have called for help… right?” Soma said, “Maybe just some sick, disgusting group is watching us.” None of the others responded. 

“... Guys,” Soma said, trying to ground them back to reality, “Ciel is right; we can’t let anything get to us. Even the thought of being watched sickens me, but we cannot give up! We have to focus now before anyone else gets harmed!” Ciel and Sieglinde snapped to attention. 

“You’re right,” Ciel said, “I apologize for bringing it up.” Sieglinde agreed with a nod. Alois was still deeply distraught. 

“So! Who do we think is the Mastermind? If we can narrow it down to a few people, then I’ll know exactly how to get on their good side and peek into the Headmaster’s office.” 

“...I think it’s Sebastian,” Ciel admitted. Alois quickly shot up. 

“What?” He asked, “How?” 

“Sorry to interrupt, but I’m confused; How can Monokuma speak to us if one of us is the Mastermind?” Sieglinde asked, “Does he have an AI?” 

“I think so,” Ciel nodded, “I do believe one of them is controlling him.” 

“So why do you think it’s Sebastian?” Soma asked, “He was friends with Agni.” 

“... I won’t deny that Sebastian’s emotions are real, but he’s really been playing up caring about people’s lives,” Ciel said rather coldly, “He’s never said something along the lines of caring about keeping the legacy of a victim alive. No, that’s stuff I would say. He’s taken my lines and used them to appear more innocent.” 

“Is that why you’re spending time with us?” Sieglinde asked. 

“Precisely,” Ciel said with a nod, “You three also seemed the most focused on escape.” Alois stared at him. 

“...You left the table you originally sat at because you feel the same. Right, Alois?” Ciel asked. Alois slowly nodded. 

“...They just don’t care,” Alois said, then started to tear up, “They don’t care! They don’t care that we’re being watched, they don’t care that we’re being killed! They don’t care that I did… that! Why don’t they care?! Don’t they hate me at least?! Don’t they think I’m just absolutely disgusting?! I… Why don’t they care?!” 

“Alois-” Ciel started to say, trying to calm him down, but Sieglinde placed a hand on his chest. 

“Let him,” she said. Soma agreed with a simple nod. Alois started to sob until he calmed down to just sniffles. 

“... So that’s why you did that to Mey-Rin after all,” Ciel said, “For attention.” 

“YES!” He shouted, smiling through his tears, “Yes, yes, yes! Why are you the first person to get that?!” Soma and Sieglinde’s eyes widened, but Ciel remained calm. 

“...Why are you the first person to understand me, Ciel?” Alois asked, tears still flowing down his face. Ciel stared at him, brows slowly starting to furrow.

“Even Claude doesn’t understand that. I only get him to shout at me when I do something vile… if that. But since we came here, he doesn’t care! He’s too involved in… Hannah’s love life of all things! I’d understand if he were here with us, but like I said… he doesn’t care either!” Alois sobbed again. After a few minutes, he calmed down once again. 

“But you guys care,” he sniffled, “You care about getting out of this shitthole… I care, too.” 

“Right. Can you promise not to do anything like what you did to Mey-Rin again?” Ciel asked him. Alois stared at him and the waterworks came to a halt. 

“...What if it gets them to care?” he asked. 

“I doubt that if they don’t care after Mey-Rin, then they won’t care ever,” Ciel said. Alois stared at him with genuine concern. 

“...Okay,” he said, “I’ll… I’ll stop.” 

“Thank you,” Ciel said, sighing out of relief, “Now. Soma, as far as we’re concerned… I think you’ll have to suck up to Sebastian.” 

“That’s easy!” Soma said, “I could butter him up like an American biscuit in no time flat.” Ciel smiled at that comparison. 

“Sounds accurate,” he said with a nod. 

“Wait,” Alois said before shaking his head, “What if it’s not Sebastian? And was that stuff you said earlier all of your evidence?” 

“If it’s not Sebastian, then it could be Grell,” Sieglinde suggested, “Or… Will. Think about it.” And they thought. 

“Sucking up to Will might be hard, but it’ll be worth it!” Soma said, “I’ll go deal with them, then!” 

“Good,” Ciel said, “It could be anyone, but I’m very, very suspicious of the man that helped me graduate this very school.” 

“So you’re close-close?” Alois asked. Ciel nodded. 

“Alois. What will you do?” he asked. 

“...I dunno!” Alois said, “I mean… What are you and Sieglinde going to do? Because I’m open to do whatever it takes.” 

“I appreciate the enthusiasm. Sieglinde and I are going to look at the bio lab, the chemistry lab, and the physics lab so that we can find a way to get to the second floor dorms without brute forcing our way to it.” Sieglinde agreed with a nod. 

“So what you can do… is make sure that no one’s suspicious of us,” Ciel said, “Sieglinde and I going to places is fine, but maybe you should interrupt us every now and again so that we don’t spend all our time in the labs.” 

“Sounds easy enough!” Alois said, “Should I also keep the others distracted?” Ciel and Sieglinde agreed. 

“We should work together,” Soma suggested. Alois grinned. 

“We should!” he agreed. 

“Then it’s settled,” Ciel announced, “I would suggest you two start doing that, then. As for the data center, Sieglinde and I will figure out similar ways to get into there. Understood?” 

“Understood!” Alois and Soma agreed. The two then left the library with a few snacks as well as their tea. That just left Ciel and Sieglinde alone. Sieglinde let out a soft sigh. 

“What’s with that dude? Honestly,” she said. 

“Well, he’s out of our hair for now,” Ciel replied as he looked at her. Sieglinde looked back at him, then smiled. Ciel blushed and looked away. Sieglinde cocked a brow. 

“Do you really think Sebastian could be the Mastermind? What about… Hannah? I didn’t mention her, but she’s super quiet.” 

“I definitely think it’s Sebastian. It’s too suspicious that he’s using things that I’ve said. He wouldn’t have changed so quickly. I know him too well.” 

“What if he’s just under a lot of stress?” 

“Like what? He hasn’t helped me at all. He’s treating this like a vacation, which is very, very disturbing. I have no clue why he would set all of this up, though. Like Alois said… the theatrics and setting everything up is one thing, but the funds… He’s the Ultimate Butler. Even when I knew him, he didn’t care about money enough to save up for something like this.” Sieglinde said nothing to that. 

“Ciel?” 

“Hmm?” 

“I think you’re thinking too much about the Mastermind now,” she said as she pulled him in for a hug. 

“What are you-” 

“Hush,” she quickly ordered. She smiled when Ciel hugged her back. The two sat there for a couple minutes in complete silence.

“...Ciel,” she said, “About what happened a year ago…” 

“Yes?” he asked. 

“I’m sorry for being so forthcoming. I knew that you were engaged to someone else and… I shouldn’t have confessed the day you left. I should’ve kept it professional.” 

“... I broke off that engagement - and the relationship - two weeks after you told me that. It honestly doesn’t bother me.” 

“Really?” she pulled away out of shock, “You’re single?” 

“Uh…” 

“... Oh. Sorry,” she sighed, “Yeah, I figured you don’t like me in that way. That’s okay.” Ciel frowned at this, cursing himself for being unable to tell her that he did. 

“What we need to focus on is getting on here. It’s just like Alois and Soma said. It’s just like you said, t-” 

“I like you,” he said very quickly. Sieglinde stared at him with a very peculiar expression. She smirked. 

“Could you speak a bit slower?” she asked. Ciel felt how red his cheeks were, how much his hands were shaking, how he felt his skin burn and tingle from anxiety. 

“I… Like-” 

“Okay, not that slow-” 

“Sorry!” Ciel quickly shouted, then covered his mouth, “... Sorry.” He let out a sigh. 

“... We have a lot of work to do, don’t we?” Sieglinde commented, “In more than one aspect.” 

Ciel laughed, “Definitely.” Sieglinde stared at him, smiling softly. Ciel could only meet her gaze, not sure if he felt relieved or even more scared than he was earlier. Had he even been this scared during someone’s death or any other risky situation? Could this man handle death, chaos, violence, and more and remain calm and unscathed, but he couldn’t handle a girl he liked without turning red and struggling to breathe? 

“You know…” Sieglinde said before pulling him back into a hug, “I just… That’s why I don’t even want to blame you for the last class trial. I just… well, first of all, it wasn’t your fault. It’s the Mastermind’s fault. Secondly… I love you.” And there it was. Ciel immediately thought of their last day together before this. Sieglinde had caught up with him in a train station. 

“Ich liebe dich!” Sieglinde had told him, covering for what she wanted to say to him in a language he could truly understand. 

“What?” Ciel had asked, both confused and tired from waking up so early. She said nothing after that, only waving him goodbye. He later realized what she meant while he was traveling to the airport. It had made him blush, but he didn’t know why until much, much later on; he loved her, too, and that was a fact. But how would they go about it now? 

Back in the present, Ciel could only rest his head in between her neck and shoulder. She giggled. 

“I suppose that’s… well, I don’t know what you’re trying to say by doing that,” she continued laughing. This eased Ciel, but it also made him hug her even more. They stayed like that for what felt like eternity, holding each other. Were they touch starved? Tired? Craving for kindness in a place where none of that was available? 

  
  


Monokuma Lesson #19: Finding romance in your darkest times? 

BORING! WHO’D WANT THAT SHIT?! 


	20. Gardening and Its Flaws (Death!~☆) : Daily Life, Night 1

As soon as the nighttime announcement played, the usual group - Sebastian, Ronald, Will, Undertaker, and Claude - headed to the rec room. However, Claude brought Grell with him. He was sure she could get along with the boys. Plus, she could get close to Seb and Will if she desired. 

“You know,” Grell said as she walked next to Claude, “I’m curious to know about how you feel about all this.” 

“Hm?”

“Well… With Will and Sebastian, it’s obvious that they’re taking the killing and trials seriously but aren’t trying to escape. Everyone else isn't as serious except for the little ones, who’re the ones trying to get us out of here.” 

“... The younger alumni?” 

“Yeah. But you… What do you think?” 

“What are you implying?” Claude asked as he adjusted his grip on a cooler. 

“You’re just so stoic… You’re mysterious. I don’t know how you feel.” 

“...Frankly, I’m trying not to get involved like everyone else,” he admitted, “I’m trying to make the most of this.” 

“Oh?” She asked, “So you’re like me.” 

“If you’re just trying to stay out of everyone’s way, then yes.” Grell nodded. 

“I fear I scared the others off because of my secret.” 

“Oh? You? Scared about what others think of you?” 

“Hey!” Grell shouted, then sighed, “...Yeah. You’re right. That is out of character. I just… I don’t want to become a target. I also don’t want to be pushed into a corner more than I’ve already been pushed. If this were any other situation, I’d be ruthless! But… because of that first motive… I fear that no one trusts me. I’m glad you and Hannah seem to accept me, at least.” Claude stopped walking and stared at her. He then smiled softly. 

“Of course we accept you.” Grell looked up at him. In this hallway lighting, he definitely looked attractive. He was her type, after all; if anything, he could be described as a mixture of Will and Sebastian. He could be the best of both worlds. Besides, she actually tolerated her. 

“Thank you,” she told him, “Uh… Do you two trust me?” Claude said nothing at first, then sighed. 

“Well, I obviously can’t speak for Hannah, but I certainly trust you,” he said, “My secret was exposed and ridiculed, too, you know.” Grell stared at him, brows knit. 

“... I mean it wasn’t murder, sure! But… you know... “ Claude sighed, “Just trying to empathize.” 

“It’s fine,” she said, “I’m glad we can trust each other.” With a nod, they continued their trip to the rec room. They were the last to arrive. 

“Finally!” Ron said after he finished an energy drink, “I was waiting for you- uh. Hi Grell!” He waved, a big smile on his face. Grell waved back, her smile slightly awkward for once. 

“What are you doing here?” Undertaker asked her. 

“I decided I’d join,” Grell said as she sat down, Claude taking alcohol out of the cooler, “I need to get my mind off a few things.” 

“Well! I certainly don’t mind,” he replied with a big smile, “The more, the merrier!” Grell then realized that Sebastian and Will had been staring at her the entire time. 

“Claude,” Sebastian said, “A word.” Will nodded in agreement. Grell caught Claude rolling his eyes before the three men walked out of the room. Her face looked pensive, which made Ronald frown. 

“Damn. I hate those guys,” he said, “Well. Not Claude. Honestly, I expected that guy to be weird. And he is. But he’s not an asshole.” 

“Ron,” Grell said before laughing softly, “I know that they don’t like me. Trust me, I can handle it.” 

“Yeah, but I sure as hell can’t,” he replied, “Besides. You didn’t expect them to take it out on Claude, did you?” 

“Hmm?” 

“Well, I’m just saying. They are. Because they just couldn’t imagine that you can make your own decisions.” Undertaker agreed with what Ron just said. 

“They think you’re stupid, foolish… weird, evil… what else did they say?” Undertaker asked himself. Grell played with her long red locks as she thought of Sebastian and Will. Well, it sounded just like them, but she preferred hearing it from their own mouths. When they said it, they seemed like they were toying with her as flirty banter. She knew deep down that they agreed with their harsh words. 

“The point isn’t what they’re saying,” Ronald said at last, “The point is… is that they’re using you.”

“Or they’re just freaked out by your secret,” Undertaker said, “I do agree with Ronald on one thing… they can’t imagine that you can make your own decisions, BUT! They’re deathly afraid of you at the same time.” 

“Wait, ‘on one thing’? You don’t agree with me ever? I thought you did,” Ron replied, playfully pouting.

“It’s a figure of speech,” Undertaker shrugged.

Ronald stopped pouting, “Yeah, I figured you meant it like that. Otherwise that just wouldn’t make sense. You’ve agreed with me on mostly everything.” As Grell realized how that still didn’t make sense, the three men walked back into the room. Sebastian and Will decided to play cards in the back, leaving Claude to face the rest with a light pink mark on his face. Grell cocked her head to the side. It definitely looked like one of them slapped him, yet he remained completely calm. Ronald and Undertaker took notice of this. None of them said a word until Sebastian and William grumpily left the rec room to talk elsewhere. Claude let out a sigh of relief. 

“Those guys are definitely plotting something,” Ronald sounded rather salty, “I mean, what the fuck even happened out there, Claude?”

“They’re just upset,” he said, “Seb’s taking Wolfram’s death personally and Will is backing him up.” 

“What?” Grell asked, confused, “So they’re really working together? I swear… they hate each other!” 

“...Maybe the game changed that,” Undertaker said with a shrug, “It could be the Mastermind’s plan, after all.” 

“...What?” Claude asked. 

“Well, think about it. New relationships are being made in place of old ones. Ciel is spending more time with the alumni his age because Sebastian’s broken away from him, Sebastian and Will find themselves to be allies, and we’re all here together.” 

“...Yeah?” Ron asked, “What’s weird about us being together?” Undertaker smiled. 

“Claude. You know Sebastian quite well, don’t you?” he asked. He said this in a way that disturbed Claude but only confused the others as to why Claude was disturbed. 

“Yes,” he replied rather quickly, “That’s true. However, Sebastian does whatever he pleases. I’m certainly not going to force him to spend time with me.” Undertaker nodded in agreement. 

“Right. But you’re only a couple years my junior, and Sebastian’s definitely younger than both of us.” 

“What?! You’re that old?!” Ron asked Claude, completely changing the subject, “You’re pretty cool for an old guy.” 

“...I’m only forty-three?” Undertaker said, rather confused, “I don’t know why you think I’m super duper old.” 

“Gray hair,” was all Grell said to remind him. 

“I refer to myself as a silver fox, thank you very much,” he replied as he smoothed his hair back, fully showing off his sunglasses and scar. Claude rolled his eyes. 

“I’m thirty-nine,” Claude sighed while shaking his head, “I believe Will and Sebastian are the same age, right? I really can't believe he keeps using my age as an insult.” 

“And he’ll probably do it again!” Undertaker laughed, “They’re both rather arrogant, aren’t they?” Claude nodded. 

“Totally,” Ron said, “You’re definitely not that old, now that I think about it.” Grell had something very pressing on her mind as the boys continued to talk. 

She interrupted them by saying, “What if there are two masterminds?” Claude looked at her with a glare, one that honestly made Grell shiver. Yes. It made Grell Sutcliff shiver. 

“I highly doubt that,” he said, “If the Mastermind were to have an accomplice, that’s one thing, but two Masterminds? It’s nearly impossible.” 

“And if we start theorizing that there’s more than one Mastermind, then we’re all the Mastermind!” Undertaker laughed.

“Excuse me?” 

“I’m just saying that it’ll drive us crazy if we think about this like that! We’ll be pointing fingers at each other, which is exactly what the Mastermind wants.”

“Agreed,” Ronald spoke with a nod, “We gotta pinpoint it on one person. And it’s definitely Will or Sebastian.” 

“Definitely?” Claude and Grell asked. 

“Are you sure?” Claude asked. 

“It can’t just be… one of them,” Grell said with a frown. 

“Has to be. Are you guys the Mastermind?” Ronald asked as he looked at them. Grell and Claude looked at one another and shook their heads. 

“Are any of our alumni trying to escape gonna end up being the Mastermind? Most likely not!” Ron continued, “Hannah’s too nice, Nina’s not weird enough to be the Mastermind… Well. Hang on. Could it be Nina? I mean she was working with Mey-Rin and she’s kinda of a loner.” 

“...Could be. Add her to the list of suspects,” Undertaker said with a nod. 

“Right. It’s certainly damn well not gonna be me. I think we’d know if it was Undertaker...So that leaves our good ol’ boys Sebastian and William.” 

“... So we have to watch out for Sebastian, William, and Nina,” Claude confirmed, “Who out of those three are most likely to do it?” 

“Well… who do you think it is?” Undertaker asked him. Claude stared down at his glass of wine. 

“... It’s hard to choose,” he said, “My heart says Nina or William, but that’s because my head says it’s Sebastian.” 

“Definitely Will or Seb,” Ron said with a nod, “I’m thinking Seb. No, Will! No… Hmm!” 

“... Sebastian,” Undertaker replied, “No question about it.” Only Grell hadn’t answered yet. 

“... This means that Sebastian did all of these awful things and controls Monokuma,” she sighed, “Is that possible? And… what about William? What about Nina? Monokuma could easily sound like all three of them, especially if Will’s trying to be cheeky while controlling him.” 

“That’s right! Monokuma does sound like Will when he’s trying to be cheeky,” Ron agreed. 

“Something’s bothering me,” Grell sighed, “Claude… who slapped you?” 

“...Will,” he replied. 

Grell immediately replied with, “Forget what I said about Will, then. Sebastian is the mastermind.” The three men looked at her with confused expressions. 

“It has to be. Will must just be genuinely angry that I’m here and took it out on you. The Mastermind wouldn't do something like that. Why make yourself a target if you want to survive until the end for your grand reveal?” Grell said with determination.

“You’re right! Oh, you’re so right!” Ron spoke with the same determination. 

“Then it’s decided,” Undertaker said, “We should all hold a meeting and accuse him of this… We’ll see how he responds.” Claude sighed, then agreed with the others.

“Alright!” Ron shouted, “Go team! Let’s have a good night, now!” Ronald and Undertaker played some pool while Grell and Claude had a genuine conversation over some alcohol. 

“... So this is it,” Claude said, “This will be a turning point in the game, whether we find the Mastermind or not.” 

“Yep,” Grell agreed. 

“... Grelll,” he said, “If that’s the case, we need to talk about something.” 

“What?” 

“About you and Hannah… when are you two going to confess our love to one another?” 

“WHAT?!” Undertaker and Ronald looked over at them and laughed before continuing their game. 

“Come on. You have great chemistry. You should confess soon.” 

“Well! I mean… You really think she likes me?” 

“Aha! I called it,” Claude said with a proud look on his face, “But of course I do. She’s already told me how much she likes you.” 

“...Aren’t you two together?” 

“Oh, no,” Claude laughed, “Did Alois say that?” 

“Yeah. On the very first day.” Grell remembered Trancy’s crude comment. Who could forget that? 

“We used to be, but decided that we’re better off as friends,” Claude said, “So no hard feelings.” 

“Clearly,” Grell replied, “You’re the one pushing for it, if anything.” Claude then waited for her to speak some more. 

“...I should confess tomorrow night,” she said. 

“If you’re comfortable with that.” 

“What?! You’re pushing for it, and now you’re saying that?!” 

“Just trying to be helpful.” Grell sighed. 

“Fine, fine. So I’ll do that tomorrow. Again, you’re really sure?” Claude nodded. 

“Okay,” she replied, “How should I do it?” 

“In the garden. Make it romantic. Prepare a picnic. I can help you if you want.” 

“Really? That’d be wonderful, since I’m terrible in the kitchen,” Grell sighed, “I can really make the perfect picnic, I just need some food to go along with it.” 

“Of course. I’ll happily make some extra-romantic food for you two, then.” Grell laughed at this. 

“I never struck you as the romantic type.” Claude only shrugged at this. 

“Sometimes I can be, but sometimes I’m not romantic at all.” As the two continued their drinking and chatting, time flew by. It was as if they hadn’t decided that they’d play a key move the very next day. 


	21. Gardening and Its Flaws (Death!~☆) : Daily Life, Morning 2

Monokuma Lesson #20: Prepare, prepare, prepare. 

Prepare for the worst, lest you want to be caught 

in a whirlwind of pain. 

  
  


“Goood morning everyone!” Monokuma announced throughout the school.

“Good morning to you, too, Sebastian,” Grell grumbled as she slowly stepped out of bed to get ready for the day. By the time she arrived at the dining hall, everyone was waiting at their big meeting table. Had everyone already eaten breakfast? She decided to eat later as she sat in between Ronald and Hannah. Hannah looked at her with a warm smile. 

“You’re not going to grab breakfast?” Hannah asked her in a whisper. 

“I’ll wait,” she replied. Ciel began the meeting. 

“Alright,” he spoke loudly, “After some decision-making between Sieglinde, Soma, Alois, and myself, we’re going to announce who we think is the Mastermind.” 

“Oh!” Ronald jumped, “We have a guess as to who the Mastermind is!” 

Ciel looked at him with intrigue, “And ‘we’ would be…?”

“That would be myself, Ronald - of course - , Grell, and Claude,” Undertake spoke up. Ciel seemed unnerved, but he nodded. 

“Let’s talk escape first. Have you made any strides?” Sebastian asked. He suddenly felt all eyes on him. He looked at Will, who was even looking at him. 

“I believe we should focus on this first, Sebastian,” Ciel said. 

“Or should we say… the _MASTERMIIIIND_!” Ronald said very loudly. Everyone stared at him, then Ciel sighed. 

“Yes,” Ciel said, “We agree.” 

“...What?” Sebastian asked, eyes wide, “You all think I’m…” He laughed, genuinely confused. Then, he started laughing due to nerves. 

“What’s your proof?” 

“Where _ is  _ your proof?” Will asked, “I don’t understand why you’ve all come to that conclusion.”

“Well, let’s start with our group,” Sieglinde announced. 

“That’s fine,” Claude said with a nod. Sieglinde continued. 

“Ciel has described Sebastian’s behavior as odd. During the class trials, he’s seemed especially emotional when he wasn’t before. Secondly, he’s been spending more time away from everyone, especially Ciel. That’s suspicious. It’s doubly suspicious when it’s not accounted for. AND! I found a long black hair on an inactive Monokuma. Tell me, how did it get there, Sebastian? Unless you’re the Mastermind, it doesn’t make sense.” 

“...You’re  **_kidding_ ** ,” Seb spoke in a rather condescending tone. 

“Ah. So you’re still yourself,” Ciel said. Sebastian looked at him with a shocked expression. 

“So you really thought that?” 

“Of course, you fool,” Ciel sighed while shaking his head, “I wouldn’t be making this accusation if I didn’t believe it. You’ve been using my words, too, you know.”

“Pardon?” 

“You know exactly what I mean.” Sebastian could only stare at him. A feeling of betrayal coursed through his body. 

“Okay! Here’s our proof: based on the process of elimination, Sebastian could only be the Mastermind,” Grell said. Sebastian glared at her. 

She continued, “I found out last night that William slapped Claude. Would the Mastermind make himself a target? I don’t think so.” 

“Why am I being involved in this?” Will asked with a sigh. 

“Because you were one of our suspects,” Claude replied plainly, “After all… your time is not accounted for, either.” 

“That is precisely why your guess is wrong,” Sebastian countered, “William and I can account for one another’s whereabouts.” William agreed. 

“Sure, but let’s not forget that you’re still the most suspicious,” Undertaker said. 

“Why am I the most suspicious?!” Sebastian asked, suddenly emotional. Undertaker smirked. 

“Because I just know that you’re the Mastermind,” he replied, “Call it intuition, call it a lucky guess… call it whatever. But I just know deep down that you’re the only one here capable of this.” Sebastian suddenly stood up, staring at him. 

“...Why haven’t you all considered Undertaker?!” Sebastian asked, pointing at him “He’s weird, he’s quiet… It has to be him! It’s not me!” 

“Enough,” Ciel ordered, “Let’s deal with this in a civil manner.” Seb sat down. 

“ It’s obvious that the Mastermind wouldn’t say that we caught them or if we’re completely wrong… I just want some confirmation that we can trust each other. If we’re working in separate groups, that’s fine until one of us gets paranoid… that may lead to murder, and I do not want that to happen. We’ve lost four innocent people-”

“Innocent?” Nina asked with a frown. 

“Without the Mastermind, their deaths would’ve been avoided,” Ciel explained, “I’ll consider them innocent.” He paused, then smirked. 

“If you believe that they are not innocent, then that will make you suspect of being the Mastermind.” Of course, everyone seemed angered by that. 

“That’s too broad,” Soma said while shaking his head, “I mean… I guess I can agree, but-” 

“Then there’s nothing to worry about,” Ciel replied. 

“... This power has gone to your head,” Will said, pointing at him. 

“Do you agree with me?” Ciel asked him. Will said nothing after this, realizing his game. 

“...Sebastian?” Ciel asked him, “Do you agree? Is everyone who’s died at the hands of the Mastermind innocent?” Everyone else immediately realized that Ciel only said all of that for Sebastian. Sebstian looked at him with a smile. 

“Of course,” he said, “That’s what I’ve been saying this entire time.” Ciel’s eyes narrowed. He suddenly felt pulled back. 

“Stop, stop!” Sieglinde said. Both Soma and Sieglinde were holding him back. That was when he realized that his hand was up; Sebastian was before him, seemingly unaffected. Ciel looked around at the others; some looked afraid, while the others just looked shocked. 

“... Did I-” 

“Yes. You slapped me,” Sebastian quickly replied. That was odd. Ciel didn’t even remember doing that. He started to panic. 

“... I’m so sorry,” he said. Sebastian smiled once more. 

“Do not apologize.” 

“You two should take Ciel out for a moment,” Will ordered Sieglinde and Soma. 

“Already doing that,” Sieglinde said bluntly as the three walked out of the dining hall. Alosi quickly got up and followed after them. 

“... It’s them,” Will said, “All of them.” 

“Why would the Junior Detectives all work together

“Fear the young,” was all Will said, “We should all fear the young.” 

“That’s… cryptic,” Ron said. 

Will glared at him as he spoke, “I’ve had many experiences with people younger than me. You must never underestimate them. They can be more cunning than you ever could be.”

“... Are they really trying to escape?” Sebastian asked, “Or are they planning their next move?”

“Well, you’re not trying to escape at all,” Grell said with a frown, “I’m still convinced it’s you.” 

“Just because I don’t reciprocate your feelings for me doesn’t mean I’m the Mastermind,” Seb said rather smugly. Grell looked hurt by that.

“I-” 

“That’s not the reason!” Ron stood up for her, “The fact you’d even say that is childish!” Sebastian looked pleased with himself. 

“Who’s to say it’s not you and William?” Ron asked. 

“What?!” William asked, “Who’s to say that it’s not you and Grell?” 

“It’s not us!” Grell shouted, “It’s Sebastian, and that’s that.” 

“No! It’s them. All of them!” Will raised his voice. 

“Enough. It’s one person and one person alone,” Undertaker said, “For now. Sure, there could be accomplices, but there has to be one main Mastermind.” 

“Exactly,” Claude agreed, “What’s happening right now is exactly what you didn’t want to happen.” Undertaker nodded. 

“It cannot be them,” Undertaker said, “Well, not all of them. It could be one of them. It could be one of us. But the Mastermind is not a group of people; the Mastermind is one person.” 

“It’s rather suspicious that you predicted this,” Sebastian told him. 

“...Is it? You pointing it out makes you even more suspicious. I’d watch your back, Michaelis,” Undertaker replied before laughing loudly. Sebastian frowned and glanced down at the table. Grell sighed, holding her head in her hands.

“We’re not getting anywhere,” she said, “This was pointless.” 

“Was it?” Undertaker asked her, “Are you sure?” Grell sat up straight as she slowly realized that there was something to take away from this. 

“We need to watch for Ciel,” Will said in reply to Undertaker, shaking his head. 

“No,” Grell said, “That’s not it. Undertaker is saying that the Mastermind is constantly trying to pit us against one another.” 

“BINGO!” Undertaker said with glee, jumping out of his seat and quickly spinning around, “Even if I personally think Sebastian is the Mastermind and Sebastian personally thinks I’m the Mastermind… none of it matters! The Mastermind’s plan all along is to get us to fight! It’s for their own amusement. This was something we all needed to learn and grow from.” 

“Correct,” Ciel said, his friends behind him as they approached the table, “We all came to that exact conclusion. Some clues must have been planted to make us think we needed to figure out the Mastermind. Something subliminal.” 

“Something that could have made you all think I was the Mastermind?” Sebastian asked. Ciel nodded. 

“It’s possible,” he replied, “As Undertaker said, this meeting was needed; if we didn’t have it, we’d continue to point fingers. We must stop thinking about the identity of the Mastermind.” He then pounded his fist on the table. 

“Escape is our only option! Outsmarting the Mastermind as a team is the only option!” Everyone agreed with that. 


	22. Gardening and Its Flaws (Death!~☆) : Daily Life, Afternoon 2

“Hey. No hard feelings, right?” Ron asked, “You know… Since we’re over that whole Mastermind thing.” He was talking to Sebastian and Will in the men’s pool locker room. The two looked at one another before agreeing with him. As they headed to the pool, they felt pestered by Ronald’s many questions. 

“So are you two best friends now? What have you been doing? Are you guys dating? Are you guys dating to spite Grell? Have you guys seen any weird stuff? Has Monokuma talked to you guys?” 

However, one question caught their attention. 

“... You’re not gonna do anything to Grell, are you?” The two exchanged a glance once more. 

“No?” Sebastian replied, “Why would we?” Ronald looked at him with shock. 

“Uh! Well… I just-” 

“I’d prefer not to talk about her,” Will said. 

“...Right,” Ron sighed, “Understood.” At first, Seb and Will swam laps, which left Ron by the poolside to watch. He observed them, wondering how and why they got so close? Did they have some hours-long talk about how similar they were? Was it because both Agni and Wolfram were now dead? That didn’t bother Ron that much; if it was because of Agni and Wolfram, then he didn’t even care to intervene. But… if they truly found some sort of connection… that could be dangerous for both Grell and himself. 

As Ron’s half-lidded stare focused less and less on Seb and Will, his mind focused on the past; everything Will had done to him before all this, how he first met Grell, how Grell became infatuated with his ex-boss, and then how she became infatuated with Sebastian. Was Sebastian working as a butler while she swooned for him? He had to be, right? After all, the Ultimate Butler was just that: a butler. But Ronald’s Ultimate Skill was much more vague. 

When he first graduated, Ronald found himself in a predicament; he could either live his life as he pleased with little money or blend in with the talentless folks and have some actual money to do a bit of partying here and there. Being a realist, of course he chose the latter; his life couldn’t get better if he had no money. That’s when William T. Spears, the Ultimate Manager, hired him. Ron didn’t realize that Will was an alumni of Hope’s Peak until they discussed it during the hiring interview. After all, there were actually very few Ultimates running around the world. However, all Ultimates have a commanding presence despite their personality. They could be super shy and timid and still lead a group. But if only Ultimates were in a room… well, the one with the strongest personality and passion to lead would shine through. That’s what happened with Ciel, didn’t it? Even when Will was just being himself - a boss, a leader - Ciel had shone through. 

A dark thought plagued Ron’s brain, one that snapped him out of his drowsiness and nostalgia:  _ Why hasn’t Ciel Phantomhive died?  _ He even scared Sebastian and William. 

“Are you alright?” Seb asked him. Ronald showed the two men a big smile. 

“Totally fine! Just almost fell asleep,” he replied. He then sighed as the two went back to swimming. That wasn’t himself asking that, right? That was just… his brain being weird for a moment. It didn’t even feel like his internal voice asked that question. He held his head and sighed once more. 

It was a fair question, though; it’s only smart to kill off the fearless leader. That is, of course, if you wanted to spread despair. Ciel was young but sickly, right? If he had read various tabloid titles correctly, that is. The young man had severe asthma and plenty of trauma; that could weaken a person enough to the point where they’re an easy target. If there was just trauma, Ron would have to watch out; people with trauma are often very guarded and mindful of their surroundings. 

Okay.  _ Now _ it was Ron having these thoughts. He clutched his head even tighter. It was at this point that Seb and Will swam over to him. 

“What’s wrong?” Will asked. Ron slowly looked up at him. 

“Nothing, nothing… I think the stress of being here is getting to me. Let’s just talk… right? Talk about some stupid ass gossip. I gotta get my mind off of all this,” he said. Will and Seb glanced at one another. 

“Very well,” Will said. The three sat by the edge of the pool. 

“... So. Didya hear about Grell and Hannah being a thing?” Ron asked them. Both shook their heads. 

“So they’re our new power couple,” Sebastian said, “I see.” 

“Well, if you two don’t officially get together, then yeah,” Ron teased. 

“Hey,” both of them said. Ronald laughed. 

“Just kidding! But seriously… What have you two been doing?” Seb and Will stayed silent. 

“... Is it a secret?” Ron asked. No answer. 

“...Come on, guys, you’re freaking me out,” Ron sighed, “You guys better not kill me.” 

“Why would we do something that stupid?” Will asked, “It’s just none of your business.” Sebastian agreed. 

“Aww, come on. You’re only making yourselves suspicious.” 

“I don’t care,” Sebastian quickly replied, “I don’t care if you guys still think I’m the Mastermind. I can agree with Undertaker on principle.” 

“Well… I don’t trust him,” Will sighed. 

“Undertaker? Come on, he’s just chill,” Ron shrugged. Will shook his head. 

“Why don’t we just call him by his real name? He’s no longer mysterious, his name is-” 

“Come on. It’s fun. Quit trying to take the fun out of everything,” Ron spoke very serious, but his eyes looked completely blank. Will’s brow instinctively twitched. 

“...Well. He’s the Ultimate Undertaker,” Sebastian continued for Will, “He should be directly helping out during cases, and yet he stayed completely quiet during Agni’s case.” 

“We already saw all the injuries on him. Did you notice that Mey-Rin and Wolfram looked like they were in a fight? I don’t think so.” Sebastian looked like he wanted to punch Ronald, but Ronald seemed completely unaffected. Will had to hold him back. 

“...So what gossip have you heard aside from Grell and Hannah?” Will asked Ron, changing the subject for the better. Ron immediately perked up. 

“Oh! Yeah. Well… hmm… Well, have you two seen Nina lately? I’ve been meaning to ask her about… about Mey-Rin,” he said. 

“We haven’t,” Will said, “She spends all of her time in the library unless Ciel and his posse are there.” 

“Poor girl,” Ron sighed, “I really should talk to her. It’ll probably make her feel better, get some closure… you know! All that good stuff.” 

“...Right,” Sebastian replied. Seb and Will moved away and left Ron there, alone once more. Annoyed by their reactions to him, Ron stepped out and walked to the locker room. He surely expected them to whisper about him like two gossiping fishmonger’s wives. Did Knox care? Certainly not. They were making themselves suspicious. That surely needed to end sometime soon, didn’t it? Otherwise… they’d be putting themselves in danger. 

Monokuma Lesson #21: It’s always the quiet ones. Or it could be 

the loud ones. Depends, really, if the quiet ones

have done something to the loud ones.


	23. Gardening and Its Flaws (Death!~☆) : Daily Life, Night 2

It was 7 PM when Hannah arrived at the garden. She saw Grell waiting for her in a vintage-looking red dress. Grell was sitting atop a red plaid blanket, a basket and a bottle of champagne sitting there next to her. Candles were set on the table by the chicken coop. 

“You’ve certainly set the scene,” Hannah commented as she sat in front of her, “I love it.” This made Grell grin. The two took a sip from a flute of champagne. 

“...So this is a date,” Hannah said with a firm tone. Grell blushed, then nodded. 

“I, uh… Yeah! I really like you. I think you deserve some time to relax, what with you taking care of the garden and dealing with Alois and all that… But I know how much you like the garden, so I thought-” Hannah cupped Grell’s cheeks with both of her hands. 

“It’s perfect,” she replied, “I’ve been meaning to do the same for you.” Hannah’s hands grew warm as Grell’s cheeks flushed even more. 

“Let’s eat, then we can talk,” Hannah said as her hands gravitated towards the basket. Grell agreed with that as Hannah took out what seemed like a lot of food for two people. There’d be no way they could finish it. 

“...This is absolutely Claude’s doing,” Hannah laughed softly. 

“I can’t cook,” Grell shrugged, “My apologies.” Hannah stared at her with a smile on her face. 

“Don’t worry about it.” As the two enjoyed the good food, they spent what felt like hours talking to each other. In fact, they even talked through the night time announcement. Grell had to check if they would be locked in; the door was still unlocked, but Monokuma never explained what these other restricted areas were. Hannah let out a sigh of relief. 

“This is exactly what I needed,” she told Grell, “I cannot tell you how worried I’ve been.” 

“Well, you certainly hid your worry quite well,” Grell said, “... I feel like you’re about to say the same thing about me, aren’t you?” Hannah replied with a single nod. Grell pouted. 

“It just sucks… All of this sucks. The only good thing here is you,” she confessed. Hannah smiled, although one of her brows were cocked. 

“Really?” she asked. Grell gave an affirmative nod. 

“Absolutely. It’d be one thing if I could keep myself busy with Sebastian and William, but I’m tired of them just… Ugh.” 

“Hm?” 

“Well… you see, my friend Ronald said something to me yesterday that just made sense, but it really broke my heart. I mean… I’m glad he said it. That’s why he’s my friend; he’s realistic while I’m a bit of a dreamer.” 

“I see.” 

“He’s just… Hmm. Different? Well. Normal in a different way. He’s exactly how a friend should be… Frankly, I don’t have a lot of people who are actually protective of me.” 

“... May I be protective of you?” Grell stared at Hannah with wide nods before quickly nodding. 

“I’d appreciate it a lot,” she said, “Maybe I’m just paranoid… but I feel like someone’s gonna kill me.” 

“Why?” Hannah asked. Grell shrugged, but their conversation was interrupted. 

“STUDENTS!” Monokuma announced, “Emergency!!! E-MER-GEN-CY. Gather at ONCE in the gymnasium.” That was it. Grell and Hannah looked at each other before quickly leaving the garden. They silently agreed that they’d get back to their date after this blew over. 

  
  


Monokuma Lesson #22: This game was sponsored in part by 

Emergen-C! Try their Super Orange flavored Vitamin C 

tablets to give yourself a huge… Just kidding. 

This killing game has absolutely no involvement 

with Emergen-C. Please do not sue us over this one little joke. 

  
  


Everyone had gathered in the gymnasium once again. 

“Grell. Hannah,” Claude said, “How was your date?” 

“It’s still ongoing,” Hannah quickly replied, “Where’s Monokuma?” Claude stared at her with a confused expression. 

“It’s going great!” Grell told him. 

“That’s what I wanted to hear,” Claude said with an amused smirk. Suddenly, Monokuma jumped up from the podium and started… singing? 

“Hey, hey, heeeey!” He sang, “Hey, hey, heeeey!” Everyone looked at one another in confusion. 

“WHAT’S UP, WHAT’S UP, WHAT’S UP, WHAT’S UUUUUUPPP?!” He suddenly shouted, “ULTIMAAAAAAATES!” He had drained everyone by that point as an applause sound effect filled the entire gymnasium. 

“Cut the theatrics!” Ciel shouted over the noise, “What do you want?!” Silence. 

“Well, if you cannot BEAR some excitement for once, I’ll just get to it, you ungrateful brat,” Monokuma spat. Ciel rolled his eyes. 

“I’ve arrived with a motive!” 

“I was wondering about that,” Ciel said, “You didn’t give us a motive after the secrets.” 

“And?!” 

“...Isn’t that weird?” 

“No!! But hey! Guess what? Now you guys have to hurry up and kill again! I’m dying to see the results.” 

“Ew,” Alois and Soma said. 

“Whaaaat?!” 

“Get on with it,” Will huffed, “We don’t have time for shenanigans.” 

“... Okay!” Monokuma laughed, “Here’s your brand new motive: you all hold grudges. Specifically… grudges against one another. If you can all forgive each other, then I’ll give you a special treat! If you can’t… you’ll disappoint your headmaster. You don’t want that, now do you? BUT! If one of you kills… you’ll all be given a hint on how to escape if you can figure out who the Blackened is!” 

“So we’ll get our hint after the third class trial?” Ciel asked for clarification. 

“Exactamundo, Kid Genius!” Monokuma laughed, “You all have four days to get rid of these grudges. This is gonna be fun!” 

“What are the grudges?” Soma asked. 

“Oh. Yes. That,” Monokuma sighed, “Here’s what I have: Ronald and William hold a grudge against each other. Then there’s Ciel and Alois. Then Nina and Sieglinde, Sebastian and Grell, Hannah and Claude… ah! That’s right! This is very unfortunate, but Soma and Undertaker don’t hold grudges!” Everyone seemed shocked that the Mastermind would just share this information that easily. Looks of betrayal and shame were seen. 

“Well, I’ll be leaving then” Undertaker said, “It’s best that you leave, too, Princey!” 

“Well…,” Soma started to say, but Monokuma cut him off. 

“You can all leave, actually!” He shouted, “Go! Go!” He shooed them out of the gymnasium. Sebastian was the first to sigh and say something. 

“Well… it’s best to prepare to get rid of these tomorrow,” he said, “We should think about what we’ll say and then rest. Right, Grell?” But Grell was not there. Neither was Hannah. 

“They ran off,” Claude confirmed, “But I agree with you.” Everyone else agreed with Sebastian for once. The rest of the night was tense, but there was clearly nothing but romance coming from the garden. 

Monokuma Lesson #23: [REMOVED TO CONFORM WITH 

LOCAL AND INTERNATIONAL CENSORSHIP LAWS]


	24. Gardening and Its Flaws (Death!~☆) : Daily Life, Morning 3

Breakfast had come and gone. In fact, both Grell and Hannah had woken up long after the morning announcement. They were still together in the garden; they both fell asleep holding one another. Grell was first to wake up, and what did she wake up to? 

“I can’t believe you’re behaving like this,” Will told someone. Grell peeked up to see William and Ronald sitting at the table by the chicken coop. Well, William was still sitting. Ronald had stood up and made the noise that woke Grell up: the sound of a chair scratching against the garden’s gravel path. 

“No, I can’t believe you're behaving like this!” Ronald raised his voice. 

“... You can’t believe that I’m trying to get rid of this grudge? It seems to me like you’re the one that holds a grudge.” 

“... Yes! I do. DUH!” 

“Please calm down. What exactly about me bothers you?” 

“Do you not… UGH!” 

“Stop.” 

“No. Don’t tell me what to do,” Ron spat at him, “I am not gonna stop just because I’m making you uncomfortable.” 

“I’m not uncomfortable. I’m worried about you.” Ron laughed at that. 

“When have you ever been worried about other people?” Ron taunted him. Will said nothing to that. 

“Exactly,” he said, “You don’t care about other people. When you treat people like shit, you just see it was another day at work. You honestly don’t even deserve your title as the Ultimate Manager… The Ultimate Manager wouldn’t treat his employees like shit.” William was silent the entire time. Ronald continued to rant and rave, digging deeply into William’s insecurities. Grell had never seen him act like this. Was he holding all this anger in? 

“...You make me sick,” Ronald said before quickly leaving. Once he left, Will let out a shuddery sigh. Grell found herself shaking. Was she upset because Will was upset? Or was she feeling the same anger that Ronald did? Grell looked over at Hannah, who was awake now. Hannah shrugged; there was nothing they could do. Eventually, William left. 

“... I have to take a shower,” Grell told Hannah, “Then I have to go talk to Sebastian.” Hannah agreed she’d do the same, only she would be talking to Claude. The two women parted ways. 

  
  


Monokuma Lesson #24: Old habits die hard. 

  
  


“There you are,” Sebastian said to Grell, “I’ve been waiting for you.” The two decided to meet in the music hall. 

“Nina and Sieglinde made up concerning Mey-Rin and Wolfram, Ciel and Alois got over their… situation. Hell, even Claude and Hannah managed to agree on their friendship with Alois,” Sebastian said. They both looked at one another with similar looks; both of them knew that Ronald and Will were far from letting go of their grudge. 

“... I’m the one holding the grudge against you, so I’ll start first,” Sebastian sighed. 

“Stop,” Grell said, “I have to talk to you about Ronald and Will.” 

“...I figured you’d know. You have a way of knowing about their troubles.” 

“No,” Grell shook her head, “I saw them arguing.” 

“...Oh,” Sebastian said with surprise. “Will told me about it. He feels awful, but he’s profusely apologized. He just doesn’t know what exactly he did wrong.” Grell reflected on Ron’s words, but shrugged it off. 

“They’ll get over it. It’s Ron… and if Will’s actually trying, Ronald will forgive him. I know Ron.” 

“... Do you?” Sebastian asked, suspicion written all over his face. Grell nodded with such confident that it eased Sebastian’s suspicions. 

“... Now back to us. Clearly you’ve moved on from Will and I.” 

“You’re talking about Hannah?” 

“Yes. I’m happy for you. Honestly, I am.” 

“... So why do you hold a grudge against me?” Sebastian sighed. 

“Your antics just annoyed me. That’s all. It’s why Will and I spent time together and why we stayed far away from you.” Grell felt like he had taken her heart and shredded it into pieces. Annoying? Was she really annoying? She meant to be annoying in an endearing way… but was she just... annoying? 

“...I’m sorry,” Grell found herself apologizing. 

“Well, if you just leave us be, then we’re good. Understood?” Sebastian asked with a smile. Something in Grell made her want to hit him. Was this the same, blinding anger that Ciel felt?

“...Understood,” was all she said, “Is that all?” 

“That’s all!” Sebastian replied, “I mean… You can talk to us, but don’t do anything like you’ve done in the past. Like I said. It’s annoying.” 

Ah. He said the word again. 

Sebastian left her in the music hall, completely pleased with himself. The way he said all of that made her feel completely ripped apart. They were never a thing, and yet he completely shattered her heart. 

She hated feeling like this. She thought these feelings made her seem like she thought she was entitled to him, but that wasn’t true at all; she just found him fun and attractive. That was it. Sure, she teased and pestered him, and it’s valid that he was annoyed by it, but did it really make her just an annoying person?

He did say one thing that grounded her in reality; she was in love with someone who loved her. Was that moving on? 

Was it? 


	25. Gardening and Its Flaws (Death!~☆) : Daily Life, Afternoon 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry for no chapter(s) yesterday, I've been very drained + tired! will continue to post at least one chapter per day, though. I will also let you all know if I decide to take a break from this story or not. This is the most amount of work I've put into a fanfic! Also working on sprites to go along with this story, but those will come out once this is finished or once we're near the end of the story.

Claude had let out a soft sigh, which caught the attention of Nina Hopkins. She shushed him before waving him over. Curious, he decided to approach the woman. They were both in the library, after all. 

“So… what have I missed?” she asked in a hushed voice. 

“Hmm?” 

“I just came back from breakfast. Lunch? Doesn’t matter. Sieglinde and I made up right after I woke up, so it took me a bit to get some food. Only Undertaker and Soma were there! So what’s happened?” 

“... Well, everyone was doing about the same,” Claude said, “However, Hannah and I grabbed breakfast after we made up, and no one was there.” 

“...Huh,” she said, “Well, what time did you eat breakfast?” 

“I don’t remember. It doesn’t matter,” Claude sighed as he sat across from her, “How are you holding up?” 

“... I’m doing better,” she said, “I think if this was just taking place in our normal lives, I’d be a wreck. But… I feel like I have to just keep moving forward.” Claude agreed with that.

“I see,” he replied, “Well-” Nina immediately shushed him and pulled her close with some measuring tape. He tried to tell her off, but she only covered his mouth. Immediately, they both saw Will and Sebastian walk into the archive. Nina moved her hand once they both realized that Sebastian left the door open just a crack. 

“What the hell are they doing?” Claude whispered, “How come they didn’t see us?” 

“I’m assuming we’re just in a blind spot,” she whispered back. 

“I guess,” Claude said, realizing that Nina has literally wrapped measuring tape around his neck, “Can you please-” 

“I can’t believe he’d act like that,” Sebastian spoke at a normal volume. William sighed. 

“No… I get it. I just want him to tell me what exactly I did that upset him. I need to hear it from him.” 

“Still. He’s honestly been freaking me out.” 

“... What do you mean?”

“He’s clearly dealing with mood swings… or his true colors are coming out-” 

“Neither of those make sense. He’s emotional. Very emotional.”

“Well, that’s his problem. He shouldn’t take it out on you.” William sighed. 

“I need to get past that in order to deal with this grudge. How will I be able to speak with him?” 

“...You can’t.” 

“What?!” 

“Well… If he’s going to keep acting like that, you can’t.” Silence. Claude and Nina looked at one another. 

“... Did you talk to Grell?” Will asked. 

Seb replied with, “Oh, yeah.” Silence. 

“... And?” Will asked, sounding annoyed. 

“Oh! Yes, we’re good.” 

“I would’ve rather faced her than Ronald,” Will sighed. Seb agreed with this. 

“Honestly, I think I hate her more than you do.” 

“Agreed.” Claude frowned at what Will just said. 

“Leave it be,” Nina whispered, pulling him even closer. 

“What do you think I’m going to do? Get up and confront them?!” Claude hissed back. 

Nina sighed, “Shut up.” William and Sebastian continued talking for what felt like hours. However, they eventually left, still together. 

“... I think Sebastian’s found a new man,” Nina said once Sebastian closed the library door. 

“Stop,” Claude sighed, “That’s extremely insensitive, considering that- Hm? Why are you even saying that?!”

“You heard what Sebastian said… He and Agni were closer than friends, and I’m sure he had something going on with Wolfram before… you know.” At first, Claude said nothing to that, opting to just glare at Nina instead. Nina pulled at her shirt’s collar. 

“You’re very intimidating,” she said. 

“...Good,” Claude said before relaxing, “Well, it’s much more complicated than that.” 

“Life always is. That’s just what I figured was going on. Do you think he and Will are shagging, then?” 

“Ah- Nina,” Claude groaned, “I don’t know and I don’t care.” 

“Hmph. You’re no fun.” 

“I just like staying out of Sebastian’s business. I’d encourage you to do the same.” Nina shrugged at this warning. 

“Suit yourself,” she said, “Aw, man… Mey-Rin would’ve loved figuring that out.” 

“Oh?” 

“Well… she had a big crush on Sebastian. Well, she found him cute but also admirable. Is that a crush? Anyways, I despise the guy but we both loved gossiping about him.” Claude nodded along. 

“... I see,” he replied, “I do fear that if William dies, Sebastian will snap.” 

“What?!” she asked, “Then does that mean he’d… become Blackened?” 

“It’s possible,” he said, “There’s far worse options he could choose.” 

“For him, sure.” Claude glared at her once more. 

“For everyone. It’d ruin our morale if that much despair was caused,” Claude with an utterly blank expression. Weirdly enough, Nina felt a chill crawl down her spine. 

“...Yeah! I’m gonna go now,” she said as she quickly stood up. 

“Goodbye for now, then,” he replied, a soft smile quickly replacing his emotionless stare. Nina almost ran out of the room. Claude looked very pleased with himself; his face almost looked similar to Sebastian’s when he would freak the others out. 

Monokuma Lesson #25: Gossip often leads to rumors. 


	26. Gardening and Its Flaws (Death!~☆) : Daily Life, Night 3

The nighttime announcement came and went. As usual, Claude went to the rec room to spend time with Will, Ronald, Sebastian, and Undertaker. Of course he noticed that they were starting to slowly dwindle down. Would there come a time where there would only be two of them? Would those two kick back and have a beer nonetheless? Or would they be mourning so horridly that they couldn’t bring themselves to this room? 

“There you are,” Ronald said as he walked in. Claude glanced at William, who seemed especially quiet and tense that night; something about his demeanor seemed… scared? Was he scared for once? If Claude hadn’t thought of the possibility of them all dying, he would have casually teased him, then reassured him that they’d all be fine. Maybe that would’ve cheered him up. 

But tonight’s air held something… was that tension, too? Surely it wasn’t; tension was what they felt in the gymnasium. Was this anger? But who was angry and why? 

“Have you brought the usual?” Ronald asked Claude. Claude simply nodded as he organized their alcohol supply once again. 

“Of course,” he replied. 

“Sick,” Ronald replied. 

“...I think I’ll go get Sebastian and Undertaker,” Will said as he quickly walked out of the room. 

“... Did you scare him or something?” Claude asked. Ronald laughed at the idea. 

“I don’t think so! I think he’s just angry.” Claude frowned. How could they be so sure that Will was the one with all this anger when he looked that upset, that frightened. 

“... Did I miss something?” 

“What? Nooo, come on, now,” Ronald said as he grabbed a beer, “Although… I’ll admit that we’ve been unable to bury the hatchet.” 

“Ah- Ronald,” Claude sighed, “I know Monokuma didn’t say we’d be explicitly punished if we didn’t forgive each other, but… come on. If we can’t do this, how will we work as a team?” 

“... Tch. Let me finish.” 

“Hm?” Claude looked at him, “So you’ll try again?” 

“... If he can actually treat with respect, then sure! But if not…” Ronald looked dead serious. 

“Right,” Claude replied with a nod. William had arrived with Sebastian and Undertaker, both who seemed completely calm. 

“Do you want me to tell Claude and Ronald why you were late?” Will asked the two. 

“That’s totally unnecessary!” Undertaker laughed, “We were just having a debate.” 

“It was more like a scuffle,” Sebastian shrugged. 

“You’re joking,” Claude glared at Sebastian. William sighed. 

“Honestly, we don’t need you two fighting, especially when the current motive is grudges.” 

“Exactly,” Claude adjusted his glasses, “We don’t need to add onto all this bullshit.” Sebastian and Undertaker agreed, but didn’t apologize for what they did. As the night went on, Sebastian and Undertaker took on a game of chess while Claude was stuck with William and Ronald. As they talked, Claude noticed two things; the first thing was obvious, for Will wasn’t talking at all. The second thing he noticed was the spark of… something… in Ronald’s eye. What did it mean? What was he thinking about to look so determined? 

However, he suddenly said something that made Will talk. 

“L-Listen,” Will said, putting his hands out, “I really just want to do what’s best for the group.” 

“Ah. So you don’t care about me.” 

“Wh- No, that’s obviously not it,” Will said, returning to his normal self. Claude stared at the two of them. 

“Knock it off, you two,” he said, but Ronald overpowered his voice. 

“I’m sure you don’t actually care about… whatever you’ve been saying!” Will sighed at this. 

“It’s best that we don’t talk now, then, if you’re going to act like this.” 

“Act like what?! Oh, are you scared?” Ronald laughed, mocking him. 

“... No,” Will replied. This only made Ronald’s temper worse. 

“You’re going to pay for everything you’ve done,” he said. It was at this point Sebastian and Undertaker intervened; Seb grabbed onto Will while Undertaker grabbed ahold of Ronald. 

“I’m gonna do anything it takes to make sure you pay!” Ronald said, a smile on his face. Will looked thoroughly disturbed. 

“Is that a threat?” he asked. Sebastian also looked just as shocked, realizing that it certainly sounded like one. 

“No, no,” Ronald laughed, “But this is: If it means that I have to get rid of you so you learn your lesson, I will.” 

“If you’re going to be that way, fine! I’ll defend myself no matter what!” Will said. Ronald snarled at this. 

“Enough,” Claude said before standing up. He then glanced at Ronald and Will. 

“Enough… in general. If you can’t get over your grudge right now, that’s fine. Take a break from it. Don’t interact with one another tomorrow. I’m thoroughly disappointed in both of you, but that’s not important; what’s important is that we don’t turn on each other. Take a breather and come back to this topic the day after tomorrow. Understood?” Both men slowly calmed down, looked each other in the eye, and realized that what they just said played into the Mastermind’s hand. 

“... Understood,” Will said at last. Claude then glared at Ronald. 

“Y-You got it!” Ronald said with a thumbs up. Claude sighed. 

“Sebastian, Undertaker: help them to their rooms,” he ordered. The four men left without another word. Claude ran a hand through his hair. He didn’t want to be the residential babysitter; Alois was enough to take care of as is. 

Something inside him wondered what would’ve happened if he didn’t mediate. Would this game have ended once and for all? Or would they all have continued on? 

What if he stopped this game once and for all? What if he was the one to take this situation into his own hands and triumph? Alois was known for taking the bad and making it good for him, but who taught him that? Certainly not the late Earl Trancy. 

Claude was like a mentor to Alois, the one who helped him perfect his skill; it takes a visionary to turn fantasy into reality. 

Perhaps he could turn his fantasy of winning into reality. 

  
  


Monokuma Lesson #26: YIKES! 

This isn’t gonna end nicely, is it? 


	27. Gardening and Its Flaws (Death!~☆) : Daily Life, Morning 4

“Gooood morning!” Monokuma chirped. Ciel woke up with a groan, then gasped when he realized that Sieglinde was next to him in bed. He jumped to his feet. 

“Mm… Ciel?” She asked, “What…” She then screamed and jumped out of his bed. 

“I… Oh. Right,” she laughed, seeing Soma fast asleep in a sleeping bag, “We had a little sleepover. But where’s Alois? And when did you get into bed with me?” 

“I’m sorry!” Ciel said, still panicked, “I don’t know!” 

“You’re a sleepwalker,” Alois said as he walked out of Ciel’s bathroom, “Soma and I saw you walk right into bed as if it was nothing. We were thoroughly freaked out.” 

“... That’s so weird,” Ciel sighed before shaking his head, “No matter. Let’s head to breakfast.” Around 8 AM, the quartet made their way to the dining hall. They were an hour late, sure, but they didn’t care. There was no need for a meeting that day, especially when everyone was trying to keep the peace. 

Once they arrived, they were immediately greeted by Monokuma. 

“You’re LATE!” He said, then laughed, “Juuust kidding!” 

“You’re in a good mood,” Ciell huffed. Monokuma tilted his head to the side. 

“Huh?” He asked, “What, do you prefer me when I’m sulking? Or… when I’m not talking?” He then pretended to sulk. Alois rolled his eyes. 

“If you don’t mind moving out of our way,” he said as he pushed Monokuma to the side, “We came here just to get food, not to talk with a weird robot stuffed animal.” 

“Hey, hey, hey!” Monokuma yelled after them “That’s violence against your headmaster!” 

“Is it?” Alois asked, completely smug. Monokuma then seemed to completely stop talking or moving. 

“...Uhhh?” Sieglinde and Soma asked as they stared at him. 

“Leave him be,” Ciel sighed, “The Mastermind is probably dealing with something else-” 

“Hey, hey, hey!! Stop acting like I can’t hear you,” Monokuma replied. The four all groaned, sighed, or made a noise in between.

“And here we thought that we’d get a break from you,” Alois quipped as they all sat down at a table. 

“You little brats couldn’t get a break from- that’s enough,” Monokuma said. 

“Huh?” All four asked at once. 

“Stop iiiit!” Monokuma said, “I’m controlling- No. You stop.” 

“... So there are two Masterminds after all,” Ciel said. 

“What??” Sieglinde asked, then shook her head, “No, maybe he’s malfunctioning. Maybe it’s Monokuma versus the Mastermind.”

“Like he’s an… AI or something?” Soma asked. 

“Something like that!” Sieglinde agreed with a nod. As Monokuma continued to wage war with himself, the group of four ate their breakfast, somehow managing to ignore him. 

“... Hello? Are you guys even paying attention?” Monokuma asked at last. 

“No,” Ciel said very bluntly. Monokuma frowned before joining them at the table. 

“So what is today's topic?” the bear asked rather casually. 

“Ah- his personality completely changed!” Alois said. 

“It’s not my fault, you know!” Monokuma shouted. 

“What the fuck is going on with you?!” Alois asked, a look of horror on his face, “Hyper one minute, angry the next… then completely calm, only to be angry after that?!” 

“Enough,” Ciel sighed once again, “It’s probably not important. If anything, it could be a trick to fool us.” 

“What??” Monokuma asked, then shrugged, “Suit yourself. You’re all boring now. I’m leaving.” And he did exactly as he said he would; the four felt relief the moment he completely disappeared. 

“Christ,” Alois sighed, “That was so weird.” Ciel shrugged it off, but Sieglinde and Soma certainly agreed with him on that; this was weird, even for Monokuma. Did it really mean nothing at all? 

  
  


Monokuma Lesson #27: If everything’s going too smoothly, something

terrible’s gonna happen right around the corner!


	28. Gardening and Its Flaws (Death!~☆) : Daily Life, Afternoon 4

Monokuma Lesson #28: Always keep Monokuma 

Lesson #16 in mind. It comes in handy! 

  
  


“Do you really think Monokuma acting up means nothing?” Sieglinde asked Ciel. The two were walking upstairs from the fourth floor to the fifth floor, there for one thing only: the bio lab. Ciel pondered her question. 

“I’m pretty sure it meant nothing, but it’s not impossible,” he replied at last. However, Sieglinde had stopped walking. Ciel quickly turned around and found her staring into the garden. He ran to her side. 

“What is it?” he whispered as he looked at the garden. That’s when he realized that Ronald was… using a lawnmower. 

“Oh,” he said with a sigh, “That’s all.” 

“... It’s weird,” Sieglinde murmured, “But… it’s not important. Come on. Let’s go.” The two quickly reached the bio lab and realized something crucial. 

“God… damn it,” Sieglinde hissed, “It’s locked. 

“You’re sure?” Ciel asked as he tugged on the door. No luck. 

“... Fuck,” Ciel said at last, “Now what?” The two stood there for what felt like an eternity before Sieglinde suggested that they head to the chemistry lab and decide which chemicals to get rid of. Ciel agreed; not only would it be organization-based - he liked to organize, not clean - but it would also be a good use of their time. If they can remove any chemicals that would most likely be used for poison, then that means deaths would be prevented. 

As they walked down the stairs, Sieglinde looked at Ciel before stopping him. 

“Uhhh…” she said. Ciel stared at her and cocked a brow. 

“What is it?” he asked. Sieglinde then boldly kissed him on the cheek. 

“Ah- What was that for?” he asked. Sieglinde only laughed at the sight of his flushed face before going her merry way to the chemistry lab. That was the reaction she had hoped for. 

Once inside the lab, they poured through all the various chemicals in the lab. Both were wearing protective gloves and goggles as they examined the bottles. 

“It says here that section A is for dietary supplements and medicine, section B is for reagents, and section c is for dangerous chemicals and poisons,” Ciel read a nearby list. 

“Oh!” Sieglinde said, “So I guess we should only look through section C.” 

“Correct.” The two did exactly that; they sorted through every single chemical in that section, narrowing them down to four groups. The first group consisted of chemicals that wouldn’t be used in a killing and are useful. The second group was for chemicals that wouldn’t be used for killing but aren’t useful at all. The third group consisted of chemicals that were likely to be used for a killing but were very useful for escape. Finally, the last group were both dangerous and useless. Ciel and Sieglinde immediately threw out the last group and opted to put the other useless chemicals back on their shelves. 

“What are you guys doing- “Monokuma said, then screamed before telling them, “You can’t do that!!!” 

“Why not?” Ciel asked with a rather snide attitude. 

“You’re sabotaging potential Blackeneds!” Monokuma yelled again, “That’s it!! I’m letting you two off this time, but I have a new rule: You are not allowed to sabotage the game! This means you cannot destroy or get rid of potential weapons, poison… and whatever else. I will not allow this!” 

“Fine, fine,” Sieglinde replied, waving her hand absentmindedly, “We’ve already done what we needed to do, anyways.” Monokuma growled and quickly left. Ciel sighed. 

“That’s just great,” he said, “We really should’ve put in some more measures.” 

“It shouldn’t be too bad,” Sieglinde replied, grabbing onto his shoulder, “At least we did that.” 

“You’re right,” Ciel said with a nod, “Let’s see… about these useful chemicals…” 

“Yes?” 

“We should decide where to keep them,” Ciel said, “Should we keep them in here or bring them to our rooms?” 

“It’s best to keep them here. I don’t want to bring unwarranted suspicion into our plans.” 

“Right.” Together, they put away the rest of the chemicals. As soon as they finished that, something caught Sieglinde’s attention: section A. 

“What kind of stuff do they have?” she asked as she looked into the cabinet. A frown then crossed her face. 

“What’s wrong?” 

“Some stuff looks missing,” she said. Ciel then looked into the cabinet and agreed. 

“I know some aspirin was in the warehouse,” Ciel said, “So what’s missing from here?” As they pondered on the many options, someone appeared before them. Well, it was more like two people; one of them loomed over them with anger while the other one was whining. Ciel and Sieglinde quickly turned around as Sebastian cleared his throat. He was pulling on Soma’s shirt collar. 

“Allow me to return him to you,” Seb said as he let go of Soma, “What exactly are you all planning?” 

“I was only being nice,” Soma pouted and crossed his arms. 

“I could tell,” Seb spoke with narrowed eyes and a harsh tone, “Again, what are you all doing?” 

“We told you, we’re trying to escape,” Ciel said with a frown. Seb smirked. 

“Right. Escape,” he replied, “Ha!” 

Ciel quickly replied with, “Excuse me?” 

“... Is escape really possible?” Sebastian asked with the oddest expression on his face; he was smiling, yet his looked like it was entirely painful.

“Of course it is!” Sieglinde raised her voice, “And quit making that face. You look weird.” Sebastian did as he was told. 

“Well,” he said as he straightened his jacket, “I suppose it’s okay if you all think it’s possible.” 

“You don’t think it’s possible?” Ciel asked. 

“... Nope!” 

“Well, that’s unlike you?” 

“Is that so?” Sebastian challenged him, “You don’t think I checked before all of you even started planning?” The three were shocked. That’s when Alois walked in. 

“Hey guys, what’s- oh,” he frowned before immediately perking up, “Hello, Sebastian!” Sebastian smirked once again. 

“You, too, huh?” He asked. Alois stared at the back of his head with a confused expression before placing a hand on his own hip. 

“Whatever,” he replied, “I don’t have time for your bullshit. You should leave Ciel and Sieglinde alone.” Now everyone else had confused expressions on their face. It was at this point that Sebastian looked at Alois. 

“What?” he asked. 

“Let me put this in layman’s terms. They’re my friends,” he said, “And I don’t like you. So don’t talk to them in front of me. In fact… the mere sight of you makes me sick! The only time I want to see your ugly mug is during a class trial where we eventually all vote you out like the filthy murderer you’ll eventually turn out to be.” His face changed so quickly from confusion to anger, but this anger had slowly transformed into giddiness. At this point, Sebastian looked tired; he was holding his head in his hand, disrupting his hair’s usual style. 

“Understood?” Alois asked with an innocent smile. 

“Understood,” Sebastian said with an eye roll. As he walked away, he purposely bumped into Alois, to which Alois grabbed onto his wrist and dug his nails into Sebastian’s skin. Sebastian’s eyes immediately widened.

“Ah-” 

“What’s wrong?” Alois said with a mocking tone, “Can’t watch where you’re going? If I were you, I’d certainly keep watch of my surroundings. You make such a pretty target. Especially those ruby-like eyes of yours.” Sebastian pulled away from his grasp and left clutching his wrist. 

“... That should teach him a lesson!” Alois said with a big, almost proud smile on his face. However, once he noticed that the others weren’t smiling, he followed their lead. 

“I hate that guy,” he sighed, “Seriously. I think he was why I hated you, Ciel.” 

“What?” Ciel asked him. 

“... He gives me weird vibes. Whenever he speaks, I just... my blood boils, my mind races... He's shit. So I wanted to weird him out more than he weirds me out!” he giggled. 

“... That’s certainly an odd strategy, but it got him out of here,” Sieglinde replied. 

“Oh, I have no doubt that he came here to spy on you two,” Soma added, catching everyone’s attention, “He kept pressing me for where you guys were. I didn’t know, so I just suggested that you’d be here. I’m sorry.” 

“No worries,” Ciel held his hand out, “I get it. He’s really acting suspicious. As much as I don’t want to make him an enemy, I appreciate you for doing what you did, Alois. Even if it was unorthodox.” 

“I’d say unorthodox is my middle name,” Alois said with a wink. Ciel groaned, which only made Alois laugh. 


	29. Gardening and Its Flaws (Death!~☆) : Daily Life, Night 4

Monokuma Lesson #29: Those who know how to plant 

community gardens feel no despair.

  
  


“I’m glad you decided to help me with the garden,” Hannah spoke to Will with a soft smile on her face. 

“Oh, no problem,” he replied, “Honestly, I garden when I need to stop worrying.” Hannah decided not to press him about what exactly was worrying him, but she figured it had something to do with the current motive. As they gardened, Claude and Grell were sat at the table by the chicken coop, chatting away. Well, it was Grell that did most of the talking. 

“... Hey, do you think the rag-tag kids team is acting strange?” she asked him at last. He stared at her with furrowed brows and confusion in his eyes. 

“Ciel, Alois, Sieglinde, Soma… those four.” 

“Oh! No. Well, I didn’t see them at all today. Why, what happened?” 

“Soma was bugging Sebastian. Well, they were talking, but Sebastian’s face gave it away; he was definitely bothered by Soma, even though Soma was being really nice to him.” 

“... Huh.” 

“Yeah! I’m glad they didn’t see me, but I saw Sebastian pressing Soma for where Ciel was. Soma kept saying he didn’t know, but he eventually suggested the chem lab.” 

“Sounds to me like Sebastian was the one acting strange.” 

“You think so? But what about Ciel and Sieglinde? What if they really were in the chem lab? Do you think they were trying to find poison that could kill us all?” 

“Well, according to the rules, you can only kill a maximum of two people,” Will interjected. 

“... That’s right,” Claude said with a nod, “But perhaps they forgot that rule. As for Sebastian’s… curiosity for Ciel, I imagine that he’s trying to patch up their friendship before things get rough.” 

“Don’t say that!!” Grell gently swatted his arm, “You’ll jinx us. I don’t want anything bad to happen anymore.” 

“As much as I agree with that statement, I’m not sure if it’s possible for all of us to stand by that,” Claude replied, “You never know.” 

“Hey!! Quit being a pessimist!” 

“I’m not being a pessimist,” Claude sighed. Grell’s eyes widened and she stopped to stare at him. 

“... Fine. But I doubt anything will happen.” 

“We can only prepare for the worst,” Cladue said with a shrug, “We’ll never be sure if something bad will actually happen but it’s always good to prepare.”

“Yeah, yeah, I get it,” Grell sighed, waving her hand a bit, “It’s just…” 

“Sad to think about anyone else dying?” Hannah asked. 

“Exactly,” Grell replied as she crossed her arms and leaned back into her chair, “I’m too attached to all of you now. Don’t start dropping like flies now, understand?!” 

“Aww, Grell,” Claude teased, “How sweet of you.” 

“Hey!! Shut up!” Grell said, “I’m being serious for once and you’re just gonna tease me?!” 

“Maybe,” Claude smiled softly, “But I appreciate your sentiment.” Grell pouted before continuing their conversation. Hannah smiled at the sight of Claude and Grell genuinely getting along. It seemed like an unlikely friendship. Then again… were her and Grell an unlikely couple? 

“So you’re dating Grell,” Will said to her. Hannah immediately flushed. 

“Ah- …Well, we’re not really official, but-” 

“I was just teasing you a bit. She’s really interested in you,” he then replied. Hannah stared at him, waiting for his next words. 

“I’m honestly happy for you two,” he said at last, “It keeps Grell out of my hair and she seems completely happy. I’ll be honest… sometimes I feel like I’m too harsh on her, but… she can be really pushy. Not to a weird, creepy point but just to a… hmm. How do I say this without being rude?” Hannah laughed. 

“I think that’s part of why I love her,” she replied, “She has such a strong personality.”

“That’s it,” Will said with a nod, “Thank you for putting it into words.” There was a bit of silence before either would speak again. 

“... Maybe I should go apologize to her,” Will sighed, “After we all leave the garden. Just so Claude doesn’t get into my brain.” They both laughed. 

“Yeah, he’s… certainly like that once he feels close around people.” 

“Really?” 

“Well, you saw how he acted when he first arrived. All cold and reserved… he’s slowly warming up to everyone though.” 

“He’s still quiet, though.” They both laughed once again. 

“You’re really going to apologize to Grell?” 

“Why not? I really think I acted like a jerk sometimes. Maybe this is what I needed to realize in order to apologize to Ron… that I just lash out at people and order them around without realizing it.” 

“Well, you are the Ultimate Manager,” Hannah responded, “I would expect that to be a part of your personality.” 

“Well… sometimes it’s just unwarranted,” he said. 

“I understand,” Hannah spoke with a nod. They continued to garden until it was 8 PM. Somehow, Grell managed to talk until 8 PM, too. Grell stretched and yawned. 

“Maybe we should start cleaning up and heading back to our rooms,” she suggested. 

“You’re tired?” Claude asked, “Really?” 

“Only a little. Enough that I just wanna lay down.” Claude shrugged at this. 

“Suit yourself,” he replied. 

“Don’t worry about cleaning,” Hannah told them all, “I’ve got it from here.” As she made her way to the shed, Will finished his work and stood up. He stretched very briefly and looked at Claude and Grell. 

“Grell?” Will asked her, “Before you go to your room, can we talk?” Grell didn’t respond. Instead, Will was met with both Grell and Claude staring right at him with shock and horror on their faces. However, their faces started to look a bit blurry. 

“What’s wrong?” He asked, trying his best to not be annoyed by that. That’s when he heard something fall to the ground with a messy slop. Claude looked a bit green around the gills at the sight. Will decided to look around for the source, and that’s when he saw it.

A piece - a slice? - of his whole head laid on the ground next to him. It consisted of the outermost layer - the skin and hair - and his skull that laid atop his brain. He definitely felt more woozy at the sight than he was already feeling. 

Will said absolutely nothing before he crumpled to the ground. If he were alive, Grell’s scream of terror would’ve absolutely hurt his eardrums. Hannah came out running from the shed, but before she could even see what had happened, Claude suddenly shouted. 

“Look out,” Claude shouted as he backed away, pushing into the table. They all saw something that looked like a disc zoom by them, scraping the chicken coop and landing right next to the man-eating plant. Claude let out a sigh of relief. 

“... That’s what killed William,” Claude then explained. Hannah finally saw what happened and heard herself let out an awful wail. Grell and Claude ran to her side. And then the familiar chime came. 

“A body has been discovered!” Monokuma announced, “You will now be able to investigate. After a certain amount of time, the class trial will begin!” 

“... No!” Grell murmured as her arms wrapped tighter around Hannah, “I can’t… no!” Hannah sniffled as she stared at Will. She could only stare at Will, for she was the last person he earnestly talked to. 

“What is-” Sebastian stormed into the garden having heard Grell’s scream. However, once he saw Will lying there, his eyes completely widened and opened his mouth ever so slightly. If Claude looked closely, he could see tears in his eyes. 

“... Who did this?” Sebastian said before quickly saying, “I’ll get the others.” 

“We’ll go with you,” Claude said as he helped the two women to their feet before rushing them out of the room. 

Sebastian, Claude, and Grell headed back to the crime scene with Ciel and Sieglinde. Hannah seemed fit to gently break the news to everyone else despite her obvious sadness. As Ciel and Sieglinde looked down upon Will’s body, they realized something immediately. 

“He was killed with a circular saw’s blade,” Ciel said, “But there’s two blades present?” 

“I imagine the killer did that to scare us off,” Claude suggested, “I don’t think it worked that well.” Grell suddenly ran off, crying softly. However, she almost ran into someone on her way out. 

Ronald suddenly appeared by the entrance and spoke very casually, “Hey, what’s- Ah!” A moment passed before Ronald screamed. 

“What the hell?!” He asked absolutely no one as he clutched his head with both of his hands. Sebastian and Ciel both glared at him. 

“You’re the only one,” Sebastian said, pointing at him, “You’re the only one who could’ve done this.” 

“What?!”

“You’re the prime suspect, but not the only one,” Ciel said with the shake of his head, “We have to get started on this investigation right away.”

“Right you are!” Monokuma said before laughing, “Aww, would you look at that?! He’s really dead. I was surprised that he even managed to speak after his head was sliced up.” 

“Enough,” Claude sighed, putting his hand out. 

“Give us the Monokuma File,” Ciel ordered. 

“Whaaat? So bossy!” Monokuma replied, “But here you go!” He handed the file to Ciel. As Ciel started to glance through it, Monokuma immediately left. 

“Ciel! I want to investigate with you,” Sebastian said with determination, “We need to work together. My priorities have been skewed, but no longer will I be distracted. Please forgive me for how I’ve been acting.” 

“... I would’ve agreed even before you said all that, but I appreciate the apology,” Ciel replied, “Let’s solve this together.” Both Sebastian and Ciel smiled, which only made Sieglinde smile with them. Claude glanced at Ronald, who was sneaking away from the entrance. 

How odd. 

He first followed after Ronald, but then decided that it’d be best if he comforted Grell and Hannah. Had Hannah been that affected by Will’s death to let out that almost unearthly cry? Wasn’t that the first time they talked? How did the killer get in there without any of them seeing them? Would the others believe that he, Grell, or Hannah did it?

Would this be the case where everyone loses, yet the killer lives on? Would the killer graduate? 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> we've finally got our next victim, y'all! expect the usual two long chapters after this one. very excited!!


	30. Gardening and Its Flaws (Death!~☆) : Deadly Life, Investigation

**INVESTIGATE!**

“Read this out loud,” Ciel ordered Sebastian. 

**_Monokuma File #3:_ **

_“The victim was William T. Spears, who passed away at 8:01 PM. The cause of death was the brain being completely cut through with a circular saw blade. There was obvious blood loss but that was not the absolute cause. Will’s chest - therefore his heart - was stabbed.”_

Ciel sighed, “Damn it. I can’t believe this happened.” Sebastian agreed with a simple nod. Something then caught his eye.

“Young master,” he began to say. Ciel stared at him. When was the last time Sebastian called him that?

“... Yes?” Ciel asked. 

“There’s bloody footprints leading from here,” Sebastian announced, “But look. They crossed through the bushes. I imagine that that’s where the killer hid.” 

Ciel suddenly gasped, “Wait. No one mentioned him being stabbed.” The two looked at the body and realized that the footprints started from the pool of blood under Will. They then saw that Will had indeed been stabbed. 

“Similar to a double-tap,” Sebastian confirmed, “The killer made sure that Will was dead even though it was obvious that he’d die.” Ciel shook his head. 

“You disagree?” 

“No. I absolutely agree,” he replied, “It’s just clear that the intent here was to completely and utterly kill him. To make sure that he died. This person wanted to become a Blackened for the sole reason of graduating… or they just genuinely wanted him dead.” Sebastian agreed with that. 

“It has to be Ronald.”

“You’re most likely right, but we need proof. Where do the footprints lead to?” 

“The dojo,” Sebastian confirmed as he looked outside, “Let's head there after we examine this garden thoroughly.” Ciel agreed to that. There wasn’t much evidence aside from the murder weapon and the second blade. 

“Question: How did the killer throw this without injuring themselves?” 

“Gloves, I imagine,” Sebastian replied, “We should head to the dojo.” The duo did just that, but Sieglinde frowned at the two of them. 

“Wait!” she called out, “Let’s check the shed.” Sebastian frowned, but Ciel agreed to do so. Sieglinde and Ciel looked through the shed while Sebastian kept guard.

“This lawnmower looks recently used… Ronald used this, then? But look!” They both discovered a circular saw with its blade missing. 

“... Based on how the blades landed, it couldn’t have been thrown from the shed,” Ciel asid. 

“Right!” Sieglinde agreed, “But the killer grabbed the blades from the shed.” 

“Ciel!” Sebastian suddenly shouted. Ciel and Sieglinde ran out to the entrance. Sebastian was breathing hard. 

“Someone tried to attack me,” he explained, “But I pushed them away.” 

“Sebastian, your cheek,” Ciel pointed out to him. Sebastian felt his right cheek and winced once he touched the cut. He then looked back at his fingers now stained with his own blood. 

“Damn. I didn’t realize that,” he sighed, “They were completely covered in a black blanket.” 

Ciel tilted his head to the left, “Huh?” 

“How could they see?” Sieglinde asked. 

“They attacked me from behind. I was staring into the garden when someone grabbed me and tried to slit my throat,” he admitted, “I should’ve been keeping watch, I apologize… I was just trying to…” He sighed. 

“Don’t worry about it. I’m glad you’re safe,” Ciel replied, “But you didn’t see their face?” 

“Not at all. They must’ve completely covered up once I started fighting back. Let’s hurry to the dojo.” All of three of them followed the bloody footprints. 

“Whoa!” Sieglinde gasped. They all stared at a locker that was wide open, one that the blood footprints directly led to. 

“Ah,” Ciel said as he approached it, “We have our answers.” Inside was a bloodied pair of shoes and heavy duty gloves. 

“Why would they foolishly just leave it here?” Sebastian asked, “Oh! These are old lockers… see the wooden key? The one that goes with this locker is clearly missing. Did the killer not just close the door thoroughly?” 

“They could’ve been in a rush in order not to seem suspicious,” Ciel agreed, “Do you see anything else here?” Sieglinde and Sebastian both agreed that there was no more evidence in the dojo. 

“... I’ll go talk to Claude, Hannah, and Grell,” Ciel said, “I want you, Sebastian, to watch over the crime scene so the killer stops tampering with it. Sieglinde, go with him. Be his second pair of eyes.” 

“Understood,” Sebastian and Sieglinde agreed. Ciel then quickly ran downstairs to talk to the witnesses.

He stumbled upon the three of them grouped up in the dining hall. Claude had prepared hot cocoa for Grell and tea for Hannah and himself. 

“We were wondering when you’d talk to us,” Claude said to him. Ciel nodded and softly smiled. 

“Of course. You don’t mind if I get your individual statements, do you?” he asked. 

“Not at all,” Grell sniffled, “I’ll do anything to make sure Will’s death is avenged.” With a simple nod, Grell and Ciel stepped outside of the dining hall. 

“Claude and I saw it unfold,” she admitted, “Will asked me if we could discuss something before I went to my room. As soon as he asked that, I saw the blade zoom right through him. He was confused why we were so terrified.” 

“And where was Hannah?” 

“Hannah was in the shed,” Grell replied, “She was putting gardening tools away.” 

“I see… And when did Hannah come out of the shed?” 

“She ran out as soon as I screamed. I screamed because Will had just completely crumpled right before my eyes.” 

“...And none of you threw the blades?” 

“Of course not!” Grell raised her voice before slowly calming down, “No. Absolutely not. Claude told Hannah and I to back up as the second blade was thrown. It hit the chicken coop.” 

“Oh?” Ciel asked. Grell nodded. 

“I think it was a misfire… or it was thrown to scare us off like Claude said.” Ciel nodded and continued taking notes. 

He asked, “And then what?” 

“We all got close to one another. Hannah wailed, and that’s what brought Sebastian into the room. He then saw Will. We all agreed to find you guys.” 

“...Why did you rush out of the garden after we returned?” 

“... I realized someone had stabbed him,” she admitted, “I couldn’t handle that the killer double-checked that Will died, as if he wasn’t obviously dead.” Ciel nodded. 

“Yes… It’s disturbing and despicable. Can you tell Hannah to come out?” he asked. Grell nodded and walked back into the dining hall. Soon, Hannah approached Ciel. 

“In your own words: what happened?” Ciel asked her. 

“Well… Grell and I were going to spend time in the garden. I was going to tend to the plants while Grell sat there. However, Will and Claude tagged along; we decided to invite them since Will was on his way to the garden already and we didn’t want to just be left alone with Will.” 

“Is that so? Why?” 

“Well, I just feel safer with Claude around,” Hannah admitted, “He always knows what to do, right?” Ciel could agree with that. 

“Anyways… everything was going great. Will admitted to me that he planned to apologize to Grell for how he behaved with her in the past. He believed that by doing that, he’d be able to settle the grudge with Ronald. Grell was starting to get tired and we were done, anyways. I voluntarily put the gardening tools away. I didn’t even finish doing that because Grell screamed so loudly that I had to check what happened. At first, I didn’t even see his body. Claude told us to back up because a second blade had been thrown. Once no more blades were thrown, I discovered the body. The body discovery announcement played and I just remember hearing my own awful cry. I couldn’t even believe it was me. I just… I saw so much hope inside Will. Despite everything, he really wanted to be better. Seeing this environment make someone turn over a new leaf was oddly beautiful. But… the moment that it was taken away from us and this world… I felt such heaviness in my chest.” Despair. That’s what it was. Was that the first time she’s ever felt actual despair? Despite everything that’d seem to happen to her, perhaps she always seemed hopeful for so many things. But this… was this a breaking point? 

“Thank you,” Ciel said, “Please call in Claude.” The same process repeated, but now Claude was face to face with Ciel. 

“So… what happened?” Ciel asked him. 

“I’m sure you know,” Claude replied almost smugly, “But I’m sure you want me to explain how I saw it. Essentially, Grell and I were chatting while Hannah and Will gardened. Right as Will finished gardening, he asked Grell a question before… ugh. Before the killer struck. The blade landed by him and Grell and I were… well, I felt a bit queasy, to be honest. Gore doesn’t bother me all that much, but the way his head was sliced-” 

“Was Hannah in the shed?” Ciel asked. 

“Oh. Yes, she was. I had to warn her as she ran out because the killer threw a second blade to scare us away from the body. We indeed kept away from it. Sebastian walked in and looked absolutely devastated. We all walked out after that. As I’m sure you’ve noticed now, the killer left before you, Sebastian, Sieglinde, Grell, and I walked back to the crime scene.” Ciel agreed with that. 

“I think that’s why Grell left, to be honest,” Claude sighed, “I really do feel bad for her.” 

“... If you were to pinpoint who exactly the killer would be, who would it be?” 

Almost regretfully, Claude said, “... Ronald.” 

“Thank you,” Ciel said after some silence, “Okay, that’s all I need for now. I’ll come back if-” A familiar chime rang throughout the school. 

“STUDENTS! It’s time to gather at the elevator for another class trial, which will begin very soon!” Grell and Hannah walked out of the dining hall with determination. 

“Let’s do this,” Grell said with a rather brave face. Hannah agreed with a simple nod. The four made their way to the elevator. Soon, everyone had joined them. 

“Did you find any more evidence?” Ciel asked Sebastian and Sieglinde. 

“No, unfortunately,” Sebastian, “But I wasn’t attacked again so that’s good.” Ciel agreed with that. Unlike last time, everyone seemed hesitant to board the elevator. 

“What’s taking so long???” Monokuma asked them, then gasped, “Wh- You’re already here!! Get on the elevator!” 

“... It’s just difficult,” Ciel sighed, “We’ve barely had time to process Will’s death, let alone investigate. Please give us all a few minutes.” 

“...Fine,” Monokuma sighed, “You’re getting two minutes to have your Kumbaya moment and then we’re having this class trial!” He disappeared. Sebastian sighed with relief. 

“This is all so terrible,” he said as he held his face in his hands, “I don’t understand it anymore. I really don’t.” Claude stared at him. 

“... Well, we can’t just sit here and mourn,” Grell said, “That can happen later. What we need to do is focus.” 

“That’s right,” Ciel said with a nod, “We have to focus on narrowing our suspects down first and foremost. For now, let’s just say that the murderer was not Grell, Hannah, or Claude. They are our key witnesses and we should treat them with utmost respect during this trial.” 

“Understood!” Ronald finally spoke up. Sebastian glared at him. 

“... Are we all ready?” Grell asked. Slowly, everyone agreed. However, they quickly stepped onto the elevator. As they made their way down, no one said a single word. Ciel wasn’t sure if anyone was even breathing. Once the elevator stopped, they took in the courtroom. 

The courtroom had taken on a rather natural, garden look. Lush green completely covered the walls. 

“I noticed that Will seemed to be into gardening, so I took it upon myself to change the decor! Whaddya think?” Monokuma asked. 

“... It’s beautiful. It gives me hope that this trial will help us all,” Hannah told him. Monokuma growled. 

“Why’d you have to ruin my fun?! Let’s just start! Now!” 

  
  


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	31. Gardening and Its Flaws (Death!~☆) : Deadly Life,  Class Trial

No one said a word. Will had always started the class trial. And now, they only had Claude and Ciel to do their best to organize the trial. 

However, Grell cleared her throat. 

“Let’s start with organizing alibis,” she spoke in a completely serious tone, as if Will himself had possessed her, “Then we can discuss exact events that went down.”

“Sounds good to me,” Ciel said, “Alois, Soma, Sieglinde, and I were all in the library. Nina, you were there, if I remember.” 

“That’s right!” Alois said, “Nina was there, too.” Nina nodded in agreement. 

“I absolutely was. 

“Great! As we’ve established, Claude, Grell, and Hannah were our witnesses. So… Undertaker. Sebastian. Ronald. Where were you?” Sieglinde asked the three men. Ronald tugged at his collar. 

“Oh! I was in the rec room,” Undertaker said, “I can’t prove that I was there, but that’s where I was!” He shrugged, knowing that it wasn’t the most substantial alibi. Sebastian sighed. 

“I also don’t have a good alibi, unfortunately,” Sebastian sighed. Ciel seemed utterly shocked by this. Doubt started to creep into his mind. What if… Sebastian did it? 

“Well, I was in the office trying to figure out how to work the computers there. Right, Alois?” Ron announced, staring directly at Alois. 

“I- That’s right! Damn it!” Alois raised his voice, “Ghh- I can’t believe you have an actual alibi! Damn! It!” He clutched his hair, staring daggers at Ronald. 

“Oh? And why’s that?” 

“Because you’re the only one who could’ve done it,” Sebastian pointed at him, “You’re the only one.” Ron smirked. 

“That’s rich coming from someone who doesn’t have an alibi.”

“Wait. Alois, you saw Ronald?” Claude asked. 

“Yes! I went up to the fourth floor to check on the chem lab like Ciel told me to… and I passed by the open office door. Ronald was inside!” 

“... Did he respond?” Ciel asked. 

“Uhhh… I don’t think I did,” Ronald said, rubbing the back of his neck, “Sorry about that.”

“He definitely didn’t,” Alois replied. Sebastian and Ciel’s eyes narrowed in confusion. That seems… almost impossible! 

“This is odd,” Ciel said, “The killer had to have been in the garden since at least… five o’clock?” 

“Six o’clock,” Claude replied, “We all went to the garden after dinner.” Ciel nodded. 

“How did the killer know we’d go into the garden?” Hannah asked, “More specifically… how would they know that Will would go to the garden? He mentioned to me how he gardens when he’s stressed… The killer must’ve known that, too.”

“... That’s right,” Grell sighed, “The killer must’ve known. Or heard it from somewhere.” 

“Well, we have our two suspects: Sebastian and Undertaker!” Ronald said, “Now, I know Undertaker. He certainly wouldn’t have the heart to kill Will. After all, I think he loved in the way a father loves his son! So that leaves us with one suspect remaining. But wait! It gets worse!” Ominous silence followed. 

“You, Sebastian Michaelis, are the only one who could have committed this crime!” Ronald pointed at Sebastian. 

“... What a shocking turn of events,” Sebastian said with a serene smile, “But it is my belief that I was attacked by the killer.” 

“Really?!” Grell asked with shock. 

“Indeed.” 

“Liar,” Ron scoffed, “You’re making that story up to take the heat off of you. Face it: you’re a two-timer, a man who gained Will’s trust just so he could kill him. And… when you think about it… you’re the only one - aside from the witnesses - capable of throwing those blades without harming yourself! You’re making everything worse for yourself!” 

Ciel sighed, “Well, any of us could have thrown the blades if we wore gloves. Speaking of… we found heavy duty gloves in an unlocked locker in the dojo.” 

“What?!” Ron asked, eyes widened, “In the dojo?” 

“In the dojo,” Sebastian repeated, “And shoes with blood on the bottom.”

“Ah… But did it have a key to go along with it?” Ron asked. 

“No. I’m surprised that you figured out how it works, but you forgot to actually close the locker,” Seb spoke very smugly. 

“Stop saying that I did it… I have my alibi!” Ronald said, pounding his fist on his podium. 

“Sorry to interrupt, but let’s get into hypotheticals real quick just to prove that the witnesses aren’t the killer!” Alois said with a smile. 

“What?!” Grell yelled and clutched her hair, “We already said-!”

“I want to make sure that it was either Sebastian, Ronald, or Undertaker that did this,” Alois’s tone was completely serious, his eyes narrowed at Grell. 

“Alois!” Ciel yelled. 

“Perfect! Let’s begin,” Alois clasped his hands, “So what if they’re all hiding who the killer was because it was an accident?” 

“You can’t throw a saw blade on accident!” Grell yelled. 

“That’s right. In fact, based on everyone’s position, they risked harming the others or missing Will if they wanted to kill him. It’s impossible for any of them to be the killer,” Ciel explained. 

“... If anything, I was closest to the killer. I saw how close the blade was to cutting me. It was as if it was purposefully thrown as close to me as possible.” 

“What?!” Ciel asked, “Why didn’t you say that before?” 

“I didn’t realize that it’d been thrown like that until I looked back at the events once more. I apologize.” 

“But I know it wasn’t you,” Grell sighed, “That was not an underhanded throw for sure. It had been thrown like a frisbee. If it could have been overhand, I would have definitely stopped you.” 

“Precisely,” Claude said with a nod. 

Alois sighed, “Okay, fine. So we’re back to square one.” 

“What?!” Ron raised his voice, “Why are we back to square one?!” 

“Because I don’t believe that it was you that was in the office,” Alois said, “Well… if it wasn’t you, then that'd completely make you the killer!” 

“Huh?! Who else would be in there, then?!” Ron raised his voice even more, “Honestly, I’m tired of this. This trial is falling to shambles. Why don’t you guys get that it’s Sebastian?! Why make up a story about being attacked if you didn’t do it?” 

“I was actually attacked,” Sebastian said, “Would I really cut my cheek just for a lie?” 

“I dunno. You seem like the kinda guy to do that,” Ronald shrugged. Sebastian growled out of frustration. 

“It has to be you! It just has to!!” Silence briefly followed. 

“... Undertaker, you’ve been awfully quiet,” Claude said at last. 

“Oh yeah! I was thinking about how those gloves were found… I can’t even wear gloves! Unless they’re finger-less.” 

“Let me guess. The nails?” Nina asked. 

“Yup! But here’s my theory… what if… just maybe…. Sebastian and Ronald are working together?” 

“Are you kidding?!” Ronald asked, “This is just getting worse and worse…” 

“I would never,” Sebastian sighed. 

“... You’re right, I am just kidding,” Undertaker laughed loudly, “Come on, let’s lighten the mood! But… that is something to genuinely consider, Ronald being the leader of this murder while somebody else actually killed Will.” 

“What?! Why do you guys keep bringing me into this?!” 

“Because you have the most motive,” Ciel pointed out. 

“Oh… Right. Forgot about that,” Ronald sighed, “Look, I’m sorry for being stubborn but I just wanted Will to see that what he did in the past really hurt me.” 

“And he had learned that. And he died for it,” Hannah said, then gasped, “Wait. I think it was something that Will said that made the killer kill him right there on the spot. If the killer had been waiting the entire time… Were they waiting for him to say the wrong thing?” What were Will’s last words? Ciel thought for mere moments before he remembered. 

“That’s right! William wanted to talk to Grell before she went to her room,” Ciel announced. 

“... Yeah,” Grell sighed, “As soon as he finished asking me, the blade went right through him.” 

“He wanted to apologize for how he treated her in the past,” Hannah added.

“So why was that the wrong thing to do?” Ronald asked the group, “If I were the one to have done it, wouldn’t I have spared him? After all, if he really wanted to apologize to Grell, then I’d surely forgive him for doing that alone.” 

“...How can we be sure of that, though?” Sebastian asked, “Remember when you threatened me on day one?” 

“Yeah, because I don’t want anyone to cause Grell any pain or trouble. She’s Grell, for god’s sake! You don’t do that to… someone that awesome,” Ronald sighed. Grell smiled at him, letting out a sigh of relief. It couldn’t be him. It just couldn’t; Ronald was her best friend, the man who’s constantly by her side. Not just protecting her, but rooting for her.

“...How are we sure it’s not Hannah?” Ron asked. That snapped her out of her joy real quick. 

“Excuse me?! It’s not her! She was in the shed when it all happened. As we said, she’d miss if she threw it from there. And based on where the blades landed, Claude’s description of where it was thrown is completely accurate.” 

“Alright, alright! I’m sorry,” Ron apologized with his hands out, “I forgot!” 

“You seem to forget a lot of things,” Sebastian sighed. 

“Can we talk about the second blade?” Soma asked them all, “I’m confused on why that was thrown.” 

“It was thrown to scare us off,” Claude replied in a matter-of-fact manner. 

“... No. I think that’s wrong,” Grell said, “I think it was thrown to make sure Will was dead. It missed, so when we all walked out, the killer stabbed him to double check his work.”

“I can get behind that,” Claude said with a shrug, “It makes more sense. After all, if it was thrown to scare us off, the killer would’ve made sure to take more saw blades.” 

“That’s true! I saw a few more in the shed,” Sieglinde said, “Ciel and I checked.” 

“... Ah, really? I don’t remember seeing them,” Ciel said. Sieglinde pouted. 

“But I’ll believe you, of course,” Ciel added, “I just don’t remember or didn’t think to look for them.” 

“Wait. Sorry for the interruption, but I want to go back to the motive,” Sebastian announced.

“Of course. So Ronald for sure has a motive… I’d say that Grell and Hannah have motive but it’s proven that they didn’t do it… Sebastian. Do you want to come clean about having a motive?” 

“I can do that now, but I wanted to focus on Ronald once more.” 

“Stop! Focusing! On me! I didn’t do it! Why would I kill Will?!” 

“Because we’d all get a clue on how to escape,” Sebastian pointed out, “And you seem to really… appreciate Grell. Or do you just love her?” Ron seemed shocked that he’d point that out. 

“I… Well, duh! Of course I love her! As a friend! Get it into your head that I didn’t do this so you can stop pointing fingers. Be a man and admit that you killed Will.” 

“... I’m not just going to bow down to your incessant taunts,” Sebastian said with a completely unamused face, “I didn’t do it, and that’s that. Why don’t you confess?” Ronald laughed at him. 

“This is just getting worse… You’re making such a fool out of yourself!” 

“No, I’d say you’re the one that looks like a fool.” 

“Enough,” Ciel ordered, “I have my doubts that Sebastian even has a proper motive. If anything… there’s something that’s been developing that gives us the reason why he wouldn’t kill William.” 

“Their budding relationship! Of course,” Nina announced with a grin. Claude sighed. 

“I assume it’s just friendship, but it doesn’t matter. What matters is that Sebastian and William confided in one another when they once hated each other. I believe this was growth on William’s end, which has also been shown in his final moments. Will just had to work up to understanding how Ronald felt. But the point I’m making is that Sebastina clearly needs someone to rely on. Whether it’s Agni, Wolfram, or William… he needs someone to talk to. And he certainly didn’t kill any of them. I can guarantee it.” Ronald was frowning during the entire situation.

“What a touching story,” Monokuma said as he pretended to cry, “So if you’re saying it was Ronald… FIGURE OUT HOW THE ALIBI ISN’T ACTUALLY AN ALIBI! You’re boring me to death!” 

Ciel sighed, “Easy enough. Why didn’t Ronald respond to Alois? Simply put… It was a dummy that looked like Ronald.” 

“What?!” Ronald asked, then laughed, “Come on… That’s impossible.” 

“No. There’s dummies in the dojo, correct?” Sebastian asked Ciel, “If so, then perhaps Ronald dolled it up to look just like him.” 

“Oh! I know! There’s many wigs in the repository next to the art room,” Soma said, “I imagine that making a wig to perfectly match your hairstyle would be difficult, though.” 

“I only saw some of his back, shoulders, and his blonde hair, as he was in the back of the room,” Alois said, “It’s easy to dress up a dummy in your clothes and slap a blond wig on top of it. I should know. I’ve done that as a kid to make it seem like I was sleeping.” 

“So this was a thoroughly planned out, despicable act that would’ve been supplemented by my death- Ah! So that’s why I was attacked like that?” 

“Like what?” Ronald asked, “... Like you were attacked from the front?” 

“Well… sort of,” Sebastian smirked, “You came from behind because I was staring at Will. However… It was almost like you were trying to get me to stab myself. Or at least make it look like I had done that.” Ronald said nothing to that.

“Show’s over!” Monokuma announced, “Boring, boring, boring!” 

“Wait!” Ciel said, “... No. That’s all we need to know.” 

“What?! Wait, it gets worse!” Ronald said, “Sebastian has-.” 

“No. I’m ready to vote,” Ciel shook his head, “Sebastian’s right: it could only be you.” Now it was Ronald’s turn to narrow his eyes. 

“... You’re fucking with me. You’re really fucking around this time, huh?” he asked slowly yet very calmly.

“I’m very serious,” Ciel said, “It’s clear that you wanted Will out of the picture because you couldn’t handle being friendly with him. So you made up a thorough plan to give yourself an alibi by setting up a dummy in the office and then spent the whole afternoon scoping out the garden. Once you figured out your plan, you hid in the bushes. I believe it was just your lucky day that Will decided to garden and you were able to kill him, but your plan was completely premeditated. You wanted to make sure he was dead, though, so you first tried to throw a second blade, but you missed. So you stabbed him once everyone was gone. You then hurried out and disposed of the evidence in the dojo. However, once you saw an opportunity to pin it on Sebastian, you did just that. What you didn’t expect was that Sebastian would fight back. You accidentally cut his cheek and proceeded to act as if nothing happened. That is my final answer. You, Ronald Knox, killed William T. Spears solely because you were too stubborn to forgive him.” 

“I’m ready to vote now, too,” Alois said after some silence. Sebastian and Sieglinde agreed to that. 

“... There’s no other choice, Ronald,” Claude said, “Honestly, we’re all disappointed in you.” 

“... I’m not gonna die just because you guys can’t see it’s Sebastian! This is ridiculous… You’re all playing into his game! This is his game, his web of lies… Did we all forget that _ he’s _ the MASTERMIND?! For Christ’s sake, he set up this death just so we can fight each other!” 

“Well, if that’s true, you’re gonna have to die! Sorry!” Monokuma laughed. 

“... Let’s vote,” Ronald said at last, “I’ve made my case.” 

“... Let’s do this,” Grell said at last. 

“Okay! Let’s vote!” Monokuma announced with a sick glee. However, this was the longest voting period that’s happened so far.

“Make your decisions! Come on, now!” Monokuma told them all. After ten minutes, all of the votes were in. 

“And who was voted for the most?”

**WHO RECEIVED THE MOST VOTES?**

**...**

**...**

**...**

**RONALD KNOX!**

Ronald stood there in complete silence, utterly shocked at the results. 

“... You guys! I really didn’t do it!” Ronald said, almost as if he was going to tear up, “You guys…  _ THIS IS THE WORST POSSIBLE OUTCOME! _ ” 

Monokuma sighed. 

“Yes, this is the worst possible outcome… for me,” he admitted, “Because you’re all RIGHT! Well… okay, a few of you really voted for Sebastian.” 

“What?!” Sebastian asked, utterly appalled. 

“But you all still got the basic gist of the mystery! Our blackened is Ronald!” 

“Great. Monokuma, allow us some more time to discuss,” Ciel ordered. 

“... Fine, fine. But I’m going to sleep. Wake me up when you’re done.” Ciel then looked at Ronald. 

“All… of this… for nothing at all?” Ronald asked himself, staring down at his hands. 

“What exactly happened?”

“... ‘What exactly happened’?” Ronald asked before grinning, “I don’t know, you tell me what happened.” 

“Excuse me?” 

“...I should’ve just killed you,” he murmured before raising his voice, “I should’ve just killed you instead!” Everyone seemed shocked. 

“What are you saying?!” 

“I’m saying that we’re all idiots, that’s what! I’m saying that if I had just killed you instead of Will, or maybe killed you and Sebastian, or even just killed Will and Sebastian like I wanted to, none of this would’ve happened! I would’ve been free from this mess and we all wouldn’t have to deal with this anymore!” 

“... So this was you actively trying to escape by the rules of the game,” Claude sighed. 

“Well, DUH! But you know what? It gets worse. I wanted to end Will’s life quickly, but not like… you know. Super obvious. A gun would be too odd, given that I’d have to break into Mey-Rin’s room for that. A knife… too close and not fast. I even considered a lawnmower, for Christ’s sake! But then I found the saw blades in that shed… I figured it’d be the perfect weapon.” 

Grell’s eyes were full of concern as she started to ask, “Are you okay, Ron-” 

“Of COURSE I’m not okay!” He laughed, “I’ve been trying to seem okay, but I haven’t been okay since day one. If anything… God, I’ve wanted to just end this once and for all since the very first day.” 

“You wanted to kill someone?!” Alois asked him. 

“Well… That’s one way to put it,” he laughed, “But I don’t mean to seem so… malicious, you know?” 

“Of course. The survival instinct kicked in,” Claude said with a nod. 

“No,” Ciel said, “This is premeditated murder. This is not impulsive behavior.” 

“... So what?” Ronald asked, “At the end of the day… I did all of this for NOTHING AT ALL!” He laughed again before placing his arms behind his head. 

“Well… It was fun while it lasted, I guess,” Ronald sighed. 

“Hang on,” Ciel said, “So your real motive… what was it?” 

“... Fine! I’ll admit it. I had this urge to kill for at least two days … I wanted to kill these people that think their life matters so much more than mine. Will was my ultimate target, but I should’ve just listened to my mind. It told me to kill you and I should’ve just listened to it. It was right all along… IT WAS RIGHT ALL ALONG!” 

“You’re acting ridiculous,” Grell told him, “Ronald… please… snap out of it. Why did you kill Will during that exact moment?” Ronald slowly looked at her with a smile.

“Because I love you,” he admitted, “I would do anything for you. Will was going to make you upset. I just know he was.” 

“Ronald! Will was going to do what I’ve always wanted him to do!” Grell told him, “I want to slap you so badly, but… No. I won’t. I can’t believe you did this, Ronald. I… How could you?” Ronald stopped smiling. Grell didn’t realize that tears were streaming down her face. 

“... I’m sorry,” he said, “I knew I should’ve just killed-” 

“Stop!” She told him, “Stop saying that… This is the kind of behavior I expect from myself… Not you! How could you do this, Ronald?! What brought you to even think like this?! I… I can’t even look at you right now.” 

“... Ouch,” Alois quipped, “That’s surely got to sting.” 

“Shut up,” Claude whispered without looking away from the unfolding drama. 

“But. But, but, but-” Ronald started to stammer, “I thought you’d appreciate this at least!” 

“I don’t. I really don’t,” Grell said. 

“But… but, but, but-” Ronald stammered, then stopped to grab his hair out of frustration, “This doesn’t make sense! Why did this have to happen?!” That was when everyone else realized that Ron was now crying, too. 

“... But wait, it gets worse,” Ronald sniffled, “I… I- No. No one will understand at this point. You all think I’m a monster now. This wasn’t supposed to end like this! I wasn’t supposed to die so young! Or like this! Please… Please, guys!” 

“You expect us to do something about this?” Sebastian asked coldly. 

“You killed Will,” Claude spoke in a similar tone, “You have to pay for what you did.” 

“Well… one of us is the Mastermind! Come on, let’s stop playing this stupid game… Game! Ha! This is real life… and I took a life just to get out! This is awful… the truly worst situation possible!” 

“Enough,” Claude said, “Someone should wake up Monokuma.” 

“Yes?” Monokuma asked, “Oh, you’re done! Good!” 

“Wait! I’m not done!” Ronald said, “I’m nowhere near done talking.” 

“Too bad!” the bear laughed, “Let’s hurry up with this execution.” 

“No. Nonononononononono! PLEASE! Come on, let me explain why I shouldn’t be killed-”

“ **_IIIIIIT’S PUNISHMENT TIME!_ ** ”

  
  


**LIBERTY PARTY**

  
  
  


Ronald had to be dragged to his execution. And when it was revealed he was in an office, he groaned softly. 

“You’re kidding,” he sighed, “Am I going to be worked to death?” He and his chair were suddenly being taken away from the office and into a party. He stood up and seemed much perkier now, giving into the music and partying away. The drunker he got, the louder he was cheered on by fellow partygoers. However, he started to realize that something wasn’t right. As he looked around, he realized that those were fake cheers; those cheers were coming from the speakers. He then realized that the partygoers around him were already dead. He was being hyped up by corpses. Briefly snapping out of his drunken stupor, he scrambled for a way out. 

“You are the party!” Monokuma announced, “There’s no need for anyone else. The party’s over when you drop dead!” Ronald panicked even more and tried all the doors, but they were locked. He then saw a window, but that was covered by bars. He continues to scramble, spilling alcohol on the floor. 

“Do whatever you please until you DIE!” Ronald screamed, realizing that he had somehow caused a fire. He ran as far away as he could from it. That’s when he noticed that electrical wires had been cut. When had that happened? Did he do that? Everything was starting to feel like a blur. 

And then the sprinklers went off. The water put out the fire, but only made the floor an electric current. As the lights turned on and off, Ronald’s foot slips close enough to the electricity. He doesn’t have to think about his life or his regrets as his body convulses for a single minute and a single minute alone. 

  
  


**THE BLACKENED HAS BEEN EXECUTED**

Everyone just stood there with shocked expressions except for one person. 

“... I’ll meet you guys on the elevator,” Grell said before quickly storming out of the courtroom. Even after she left, the rest stood there just staring out at what was now total darkness. 

“... I think I’ll join Grell, if you don’t mind,” Claude said. 

“Wait. So you and Sebastian agree with the Mastermind?” Ciel asked. 

“... That doesn’t matter,” Claude said coldly. 

“It does, actually,” Sebastian sighed, “Why would we help Ronald get out of his punishment? It’s as simple as that.” 

“... Maybe if we helped him, we could’ve stopped the Mastermind,” Ciel mused. 

“Or we could’ve gotten all of us executed,” Claude said, “I know you all think you can handle the Mastermind with brute force and teamwork, but I would suggest looking at the situation from another perspective, mainly the Mastermind’s perspective.” Claude then walked out, but it left everyone with a realization: Claude was right. They all had to see things the way the Mastermind did. Perhaps they can win by playing by the rules. If they play by the rules… they could find a loophole. 

  
  


Hopeful Lesson #1: If you can find one 

loophole… more will surely follow. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The end of this chapter has finally come. what do you all think so far? Let me know on here with a comment or even giving kudos. You can also reach me at theatmmmmm on tumblr!


	32. It Gets Worse: Refutation of Strangulation: Daily Life, Morning 1

“... How did it come to this”?” Sebastian asked the group with a voice that only sounded drained. No one could sleep. It seemed as if the remaining contestants had stayed in their rooms until morning. They all then gathered at the dining hall as usual.

“None of it makes sense,” Sebastian continued, “If… If we continue going down this route, then we’ve proved the Mastermind’s point. If we all give into despair… we’ll never be able to survive.” No one interjected or intervened. It seemed agreed upon that this would just be the last time. The very, very last time. No more killing. No more trials. They would figure out how to get out of here together. They would not give into despair, they would not fall for Monokuma’s motives, and they would never turn on one another again. 

All of that was silently agreed upon. 

“Well,” Claude started to say in a voice that was almost too quiet, “I’ll… probably go bake. Or something. I need to clear my mind.” The sound of Claude sounding so unsure struck something in Hannah. 

“I’ll join you,” she said rather firmly. It was as if the two had completely changed personalities for this brief yet unknown amount of time. Would they be like this forever? 

Ciel said nothing as the group slowly dispersed, only staring down at his hands. When only Alois, Sieglinde, and Soma were sitting at the table, Ciel looked up.

“We need to start refining our plan,” he announced to them, “And executing it. If even one of us can escape, that will give the rest of us a much more of a chance than before.” 

“Understood,” Sieglinde said with a determined nod, “We have to find a way to sneak through!” 

“... I found something in the second floor bathroom,” Alois admitted, pulling on his shirt collar, “An entrance. An opening. No clue what it leads to, though.” A sparkle suddenly appeared in Ciel’s eye. 

“This seems like a lead for sure!” Soma said with a smile, “However… I’m worried about the Mastermind seeing us.” 

“I think it’s in a blind spot,” Alois replied with a nod, “I was concerned, too, so I checked. I screamed, I said some very suspicious things, and I flipped off the camera… Nothing.” Ciel stared at him, wondering why the Mastermind didn’t react to all of that. 

“We have to check this out! We should check it out right now!” Sieglinde bounced in her seat. 

“Let’s wait,” Ciel replied, “I don’t want the Mastermind to become suspicious." The others completely agreed; if they suddenly looked determined right after that despair-inducing trial, the Mastermind would be curious. 

That trial. Ronald, the Ultimate Socialite, couldn;t let go of his grudge and killed William T. Spears, the Ultimate Manager. That wasn’t the full story, though. Something in Ronald made him say and do all of that. Was that despair? True and utter despair? 

How easy was it to give in? After all, they all knew that they wanted to leave. But to those four, leaving as a group was much more important than leaving alone. They would never ever fall to despair. 

Ciel Phantomhive, Sieglinde Sullivan, Alois Trancy, and Soma Asman Kadar would never give into despair. 

  
  


Hopeful Lesson #2: Despair is a fickle beast; it can easily be 

destroyed if you have the proper tools to do so. 

  
  


“You ever wonder why I hate Sebastian?” Undertaker asked Grell. The two were sitting in the AV room doing some of their own investigation. 

“Hmm?” Grell asked, “Well, of course I do. But… You really hate him?” 

“Of course,” he said, “I… Well. Grell. I trust you. I want to say why, but I fear that I have to say it in a rather cryptic way.” He then nodded towards the camera. 

“That’s fine,” she replied, “Go ahead and say what you can.” 

“... He’s the Mastermind,” he started out with, but Grell already took issue with that.

“I thought you were trying to AVOID saying that!” she shouted, but Undertaker only laughed at her. 

“I don’t care about that! What I care about is not entirely giving away how he’s taken Ciel away from me. Or is that too much already?” Undertaker had started off cheerful, but his tone shifted as he taunted the camera. 

“... What do you mean?” Grell asked, “I have to know more now.” 

“Well… You see, it’s a very odd relationship that Ciel and I have. You see, I knew that he had taken his brother’s identity. However, I don’t view him as lesser than because of it. I was disappointed, sure, but I can’t fault him for doing so. Especially because Sebastian helped him with that plan.” 

“...What?” 

“Indeed. Sebastian was not just Ciel’s tutor and butler. He’s always been whispering in his ear. When Sebastian isn’t doing such vile things like that, he’s clearly involved in something else. And I’d assume that the Mastermind would be one of us that’s trying to stay out of trouble. Also… isn’t it just too tragic that everyone that Sebastian latches onto is passing? I fear that Ciel, too, may pass during this game.” Grell gasped. 

“I don’t want to think about that. I mean… I used to hate him and call him a brat, but now… I think he’s our best chance of getting out of here. And I am not dying without finishing that series.” Undertaker chuckled. 

“Of course. I agree with you entirely. However, I’m quite comfortable with dying here.” 

“...You are?” Grell asked, “Well! I mean… if I die, I die, but… I’d prefer not to die.” 

“I think it’d be an honor to die fighting for Ciel and against Sebastian. I wonder if Ciel is also content with dying if it means that he’ll be fighting for his friends. However… I doubt that he realizes that everyone was right: Sebastian is the Mastermind. That’s a fact. I know I sound like an old man that has no clue what he’s saying, but trust me. He is.” Grell thought about what he said before nodding. 

“I agree. It’s just hard to admit that he’s the mastermind.” 

“But you’ve admitted it right now. See?” Grell frowned at this. However, she quickly laughed. The two continued to joke around as they investigated the A/V room for anything that could help them escape. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey y'all! Not sure how many of you will read this far, but I'll be changing my schedule from posting one chapter daily to posting one chapter at least once a week! Writing one chapter every day for a whole month was a challenge, but I'm glad I did it! However, I just need to take it easy on this story and focus on other projects, too!


	33. It Gets Worse: Refutation of Strangulation: Daily Life, Afternoon 1

“So here we have something called King’s Water,” Sieglinde said as she showed Alois and Soma a beaker halfway full of something that looked exactly like water, “This can melt gold and platinum, but not steel. If these bars are made of steel, then we’ll need this nitric acid.” She showed off another beaker half full of something that looked exactly like water. 

“Understood,” Soma said with a nod. 

“You understood that?” Alois asked, “What’s King’s Water?” 

“Both mixtures are just nitric acid that’s been dissolved in water. However, the King’s Water - we call it regal water - has hydrochloric acid mixed in. Thank you, Agni, for allowing me to remember that,” Soma replied, hands in prayer at the mere mention of Agni. 

“How are we applying it?” Ciel asked Sieglinde as he approached them all.

“I’ll start out with a pipette just to see which mixture works… If either of them work,” she sighed, “If one of them works, then we’ll need something bigger. And I didn’t find anything bigger than this in the chem lab.” She showed off the pipette she’d start out with. 

“I’ll go find something!” Alois volunteered. 

“I have to talk to you about something, so I’ll join you,” Ciel said with a brief nod, “Soma, stay with Sieglinde.” 

“Will do,” Soma said with an affirmative nod. As Ciel and Alois walked away from their friends, they didn’t realize how close they were; they were close enough to kiss with ease. That thought crossed Trancy’s mind, but it did not cross Phantomhive’s mind. 

“...What did you want to talk to me about?” Alois asked as they were going upstairs to the fourth floor. Ciel sighed softly. 

“Frankly, it’s about how the last trial went,” he replied, “Something doesn’t feel right.” 

“Fair. After all, not only was Ronald planning to kill you… but he seemed the most normal out of everyone. Was that all a facade?” Ciel shook his head. 

“If it was a facade, he wouldn’t have been the Ultimate Socialite. It’s this game. Everything about it will drive us to murder. The isolation, the motives… the mystery-” 

“Hmm? The mystery?” Alois asked, “What do you mean?” 

“Well… I’m curious about what’s happened outside of this place,” Ciel replied, “I won’t lie that I’ve been tempted to attempt graduation just to see what’s going on out there. But that’s exactly what the Mastermind wants.” Alois nodded, then sighed. The two headed down to the dining hall after finding absolutely nothing in any rooms. 

“Yeah, I get it… I bet that’s what Ronald was thinking about, too. I mean… I did…  _ that _ … to Mey-Rin, but I wouldn’t kill anyone, you know? It makes you wonder what was really going on inside his head.” 

“...Perhaps because he was so normal and level-headed compared to the rest of us, that was his downfall,” Ciel theorized. 

“Hmm? How in the world-” 

“Think about it. None of us are really normal. We’re all weird, even the recently deceased. Ronald and Will were the most normal out of all of us, the most accepted by society. And yet… they both perished because of their normalcy. Will was obviously changing his ways like any typical person would when faced with the motive, but Ronald… Ronald had gone down the exact opposite route; his mental stability decayed because of the pressure. Those of us that’re alive can actually handle this. Think of Lizzy, think of Mey-Rin… They all suffered the same fate. Agni was just a noble victim while Wolfram was protecting Sieglinde. They’re the odd ones out.” 

“...That’s certainly one way to think about it.” 

“You disagree?” 

“I don’t disagree, I just… I wonder if it even really matters. Like it’s the reason why we’re alive, sure, but how far can we go with that? When will one of us crack next?” 

“... I suspect that Nina will be next to go. She’ll die, I mean. Then… I imagine that we’ll be easy targets. After all, we’re trying to escape. If any of the others - even if the ones that are dead - are the Mastermind, then they’ll want to get rid of us for sure.” Alois frowned. 

“Do you really think Nina will die?” He asked, “I mean… when would that even be?” 

“It’s hard to say. Hopefully it never happens, but you never know. That’s another thing; everyone left is unpredictable. Even myself.” 

“Huh? So me, too? Ciel, that’s so mean! I mean it’s true, but that’s still so mean!” Ciel rolled his eyes. 

“Although I highly doubt the four of us could commit murder at this point, it’d be foolish to not include us as possible suspects. Anything could happen.” 

“...Anything?” Alois asked.

“Anything,” Ciel replied with a quick nod. The two had arrived at the dining hall. No one was there, so they walked into the kitchen. Again, no one was there. 

“Wasn’t Claude in here?” Ciel asked. 

“He probably just finished baking,” Alois said with a shrug, “I wouldn’t worry about it.” Ciel agreed and the two looked around for any tools that could help. 

“Oh! Look, Ciel! A baster!” Alois said as he squeezed the baster. Ciel sighed. 

“That’ll work,” he said, “Are there any bigger ones, though?” Alois smirked. 

“I think this is quite big.” Ciel rolled his eyes. As the two approached one another, someone completely blocked the doorway. 

“What are you doing?” Claude asked, one hand on his hip. The two young men looked at him, then looked at one another. Alois grinned. 

“Oh, we’re just… looking for a snack!” Alois said as he quickly hid the baster behind his back, laughing. Claude narrowed his eyes. 

“We’re using that to melt the bars that block the second floor dorms,” Ciel bluntly explained. 

“Oh. Well… good luck with that,” Claude said as he walked to the fridge, allowing Ciel and Alois to quickly leave. Once they were out of the dining hall, they quickly walked to Sieglinde and Soma. 

“What took you guys so long?” Sieglinde asked, pouting. Ciel laughed softly. 

“I apologize,” Ciel replied. Alois hesitated to hand the baster to Sieglinde. 

“...Can we talk about something?” he asked. 

“Of course!” Soma replied, “What is it?” Alois looked down at the ground before quickly handing the baster to Sieglinde. 

“It’s about who I think the Mastermind is,” he sighed, “I think everyone questioning Sebastian is valid, but… maybe we have the wrong guy.” 

“Huh?” Soma and Sieglinde asked. Ciel nodded in agreement.

“You’re talking about Claude? I found his behavior rather odd myself.” 

“Hang on. If he was the Mastermind, wouldn’t he just have stopped us from doing this?” Soma asked, “Or would that cause too much suspicion??”

“I fear that Claude and I are quite similar in temperament; if I were the Mastermind, I would remain calm throughout all of this and strike as Monokuma,” Ciel replied. 

“But I assume if this went against the rules, we’d all be dead already. We’re not breaking through any doors. There’s nothing in the rules about these bars,” Sieglinde added. The others agreed before Sieglinde started to squeeze the mixture that worked the best - the nitric acid dissolved in water - onto the bars. They slowly began to melt away. 

“Good thing I’m wearing gloves,” Sieglinde quipped with a proud smile on her face. The three young men looked at one another. 

Soma eventually said, “I think you’re right, Alois. I know we all shrugged this off before because of how sure Claude was, but the constant filming seems like something the Ultimate Filmmaker would do. Would the Ultimate Butler really set all this up? No, probably not. But would the Ultimate Filmmaker - given the content of his films, mind you - set all this up for dramatics? I think so!” 

“Exactly. The only person that knows Claude better than I do is Hannah, unfortunately… So I think I’d know if he was the Mastermind! And he is!” 

“Right… Frankly, I wonder if we were subliminally told that Sebastian was the Mastermind,” Ciel agreed. 

“Done!” Sieglinde said at last. Indeed, the bars had melted away. 

“That was quite fast,” Soma said. Ciel stared at the gap with wide eyes. They did it. They finally gained access to the second floor dormitory. 

“Two of us should go to the bathroom while two of us look around,” Ciel said at last. 

“Soma and I will go to the bathroom. Have fun!” Alois said with a big smile as he practically dragged Soma away from Ciel and Sieglinde. The two looked at each other. 

“After you,” Ciel said with a slight smirk. 

Sieglinde laughed, “Are you scared?” 

“Of course not. I just want to walk behind you in case something happens,” he replied. Sieglinde blushed softly and agreed. As the two stepped through the admittedly small hole without hurting themselves, they felt the atmosphere completely change. It was as if death itself hung around them. Ciel shivered as both of them walked upstairs. What would they find there? Would they be caught by the Mastermind? It seemed like the Mastermind didn’t care. But why? Was there truly nothing of importance up there? But if that was true, then why lock it up completely? And there were still a few locked rooms, too. Like that one classroom on the fifth floor… Why was that locked? 

There were still so many mysteries to uncover, but Ciel figured that they had as much time as possible to figure it all out. 

Hopeful Lesson #3: Always be open to the unknown. 

You’ll never know what you’ll find.


	34. It Gets Worse: Refutation of Strangulation: Daily Life, Night 1

Sebastian Michaelis. Claude Faustus. Hannah Annafellows. Grell Sutcliff. Nina Hopkins. Undertaker. They were the remaining adults that were at least a couple years older than Soma, who was 24. 

The thought of having anything happen to the young adults terrified Hannah. Lizzy - someone that both Ciel and Alois trusted - had gone far too soon because of this madness. Agni was gone. Wolfram, Mey-Rin, Ronald, and William were gone now, too. She couldn’t help but jump when Nina called out her name. She placed a styrofoam cup full of hot cocoa in front of her. 

“Here you are,” she said with a smile.

“Thank you. That’s awfully nice of you,” Hannah replied with a nod. Grell sat next to the other ladies after a few minutes passed by. 

“This library just holds an odd feeling to it now,” Grell said, then gasped, “Uh… Sorry, Nina.” 

“...It’s quite alright,” Nina replied, a thin smile spread across her face, “I agree. But I can’t bring myself to leave it as often as I should. I’ve been working on some designs here and there, but… I don’t know. It’s just not as fun anymore.” 

“Well, you shouldn’t push yourself,” Hannah said, trying to reassure her. Nina nodded before sighing. 

“Yeah, but it keeps my mind busy. It stops me from going paranoid. Reading helps, too, though. How are you two not feeling paranoid that any of the others won’t go after you?” Hannah and Grell looked at one another.

“...I’m not worried about dying myself,” Hannah admitted, “I feel like I’ve come to terms with that fact long ago. I’m more paranoid about someone trying to intervene with Alois and his friends.” Grell nodded. 

“I can’t say that I’m not worried about dying - I’d prefer to live - but that does concern me, too. We need to escape and they’re our best shot. I’m certainly not capable of trying to figure all that weird chemistry stuff they pulled,” she said while flipping her hair. 

“Oh? You’re talking about the steel bars? It was quite innovative,” Hannah said with a nod. Nina stared at them. 

“What’d they do?” 

“They managed to melt the steel bars that blocked the second floor dorms. There’s some damage on the floor but otherwise it was a clean job.” Nina nodded after Hannah explained the situation. 

“That’s pretty damn cool,” she laughed weakly. Hannah and Grell looked at her with slight concern. 

“Are you okay?” Hannah asked. Grell left the sympathy stuff to Hannah; she had to be the one in action, the one who was cocky even in the midst of a storm. And they were all trapped in some hell of a shitstorm. 

Nina nodded, “Just tired, I think.” 

“Hey, you guys!” A voice that held the same cadence as Monokuma’s announced its presence. The three girls jumped, but Grell relaxed when she realized that it was only Undertaker. 

“You scared the shit out of us,” Grell said. Undertaker laughed. 

“My bad, my bad,” he apologized, “Wasn’t my intention but your reactions were priceless!” He sat down across from Grell. 

“...Did you come to tell us something? Or ask us something?” Hannah asked. 

“Well… you see, that’s the thing,” Undertaker sighed, “All the men spent the night in the rec room to keep one another accounted for but to also have fun. We suspected that all of us were most likely to commit murder, so we agreed to just keep an eye on one another. With half of that group gone, Sebastian and Claude completely abandoned me! I expected Claude and I to have a heart-to-heart, but he never showed! So I figured that I might as well join you. If that’s okay, of course.” 

“Of course it’s okay,” Hannah said with a nod and a smile, “That’s really odd that they never showed up.” 

“Well, Sebastian was the last to join us, as Agni unfortunately never had the chance to join us,” Undertaker said as he shook his head, “So he didn’t really have an interest in it aside from Wolfram and William. As for Claude, he and I agreed on this plan with Ronald.” 

“Really?” Grell asked. Undertaker nodded in reply.

“...Wow,” Nina said, shaking her head, “That’s… God!” She grabbed her head suddenly. 

“What's wrong?” Hannah asked. 

“I barely knew these people but I just… It feels like that just yesterday we all came here. We were all alive, none of us were having murderous tendencies… I can’t take it!” Nina raised her voice. Hannah immediately reached over to grab her shoulder. 

“I know, I know,” she whispered, “It’s going to be okay, though. No one is going to murder again-” 

“You say that, but how do you know?!” Nina asked as she pushed her away, “You don’t know, Hannah! You don’t.” Nina had tears quickly crawling down her face. 

“...God. I even miss Will’s hard-ass attitude now,” she laughed softly, “I miss Lizzy and her cute fashion… Agni was just so nice and level-headed… Ronald was so cheerful and quite the looker for a man… Wolfram also seemed so calm and he was only trying to protect Sieglinde, but… Mey-Rin. Mey-Rin. Mey-Rin, Mey-Rin, Mey-Rin. Why did she- Why did I-??” She ran her hands through her hair before quickly standing up. 

“... Nina,” Grell said rather sternly, “Please pull yourself together. You’re going to make yourself a target by-” 

“STUDENTS!” Monokuma chirped throughout the school. This was followed by a loud clap. 

“Ahem… Please head to the gymnasium IMMEDIATELY,” Monokuma said. That was it. The four looked at one another. 

“... I miss my dad,” Nina sniffled, patting her eyes with her sleeve. 

Grell sighed, “Okay, that’s deeper than we should go-” 

“We can talk about that later,” Undertaker said, suddenly serious, “For now, we should go to the gymnasium.” Hannah agreed with a slow nod. The group of four walked down to the first floor. Oddly enough, Nina had walked rather close to Undertaker. He certainly didn’t mind; the poor lady needed something to comfort her. 

  
  


Hopeful Lesson #4: There must be a healthy balance 

of caring for yourselves and caring for others.

  
  


Everyone who was currently alive arrived at the gym at around the same time. 

“Hey, I have something to ask you two!” Undertaker said rather loudly, directly calling out Claude and Sebastian, “How come you two never showed up to the rec room?” 

“I apologize,” Claude said with a quick nod, “Sebastian wanted to talk to me in private.” Sebastian nodded, smiling rather coyly. Undertaker frowned but decided to leave it at that. The Ultimate Quartet were quite excited. 

“This is the new motive, right?” Soma asked, “All we have to do is sit through what the Mastermind has to say and we can get back to work!” Alois shushed him before giggling. 

“Yeah, yeah, but be quiet,” he said, waving his hand absentmindedly. Monokuma popped up from the podium.

“Goood evening, students!” Monokuma announced, “Well, it’s close to midnight… But anyways! I’m here for one reason and one reason only; it’s time for your newwww MOTIVE!” No one said a word, waiting for Monokuma to continue. 

“...Ummm, okay then! This one is plain and simple; if one of you becomes Blackened and is unable to be discovered, you will win TEN MILLION DOLLARS!” He didn’t get a single reaction out of anyone. 

“You guys… you’re supposed to be impressed!” He yelled. That was when Ciel laughed. 

“We’re all far from impressed,” he explained, “We are a team now. We will take you down, Mastermind.” Monokuma stared at him before laughing. 

“Okay! If you say so!” He replied, “Just know that TEN MILLION DOLLARS is on the line! Go on, think about it… isn’t that just tempting?” 

“... Not really,” Sebastian said, shaking his head, “None of us are really motivated by money.” Monokuma slowly disappeared. Once he was nowhere to be seen, Sebastian let out a sigh of relief. 

“That was pointless,” he said, “Oh well. Say, Ciel. What did you discover today?” Ciel jumped before staring at him. 

“Uh… Well, you see-” 

“None of your business,” Alois said while sticking his tongue out. 

“Actually, it is our business,” Claude said, which Hannah and Grell agreed with. Alois stopped sticking his tongue out before giving Ciel a nod. 

“Well… There were some pictures we found,” Ciel explained, “Pictures of us. Us being Ciel, Alois, and Lizzy.” 

“Oh?” Sebastian asked, tilting his head to the side. 

“Yes. They’re probably fake, though. The clothes look like clothes we’d wear currently.” 

“Oh,” Sebastian replied, “I see. Anything else?” 

“A few locked rooms,” Ciel continued, “But we don’t know how to open them. There’s a key somewhere. I imagine, at least.” Sebastian stared at him for a few seconds before smiling. Those few seconds felt like minutes; Sebastian had been analyzing Ciel the entire time and Phantomhive knew it. 

“Oh well! We can always find it eventually. Anything else?” 

“That’s it. It’s severely damaged up there, but there’s no way to escape.” 

“Aw, damn,” Grell sighed, “Well, then we have to figure out how to beat the Mastermind head-on, then.” 

“You think that’s the best way to go about it?” Soma asked her. Undertaker looked up at the ceiling. Faint rain could be heard. 

“...I believe it may be our only option,” he said before leaving. 

“...A storm is brewing,” Grell said, “Well, it’s best that we all get some shut-eye.” 

“Agreed. Let’s talk tomorrow,” Sebastian said before leaving. The majority of the others followed after him, leaving Claude and Nina there. 

“... Is something wrong?” he asked her. Startled, she looked over at him. 

“It’s nothing,” she said, shaking her head, “... Well. Okay, something about that whole thing bothered me.” 

“Oh, I agree. What Monokuma said or what Sebastian and Ciel were talking about?” 

“Both.” As the two continued to talk, the others headed to their rooms. However, Grell and Hannah decided to stay in Hannah’s room for the night. 


	35. It Gets Worse: Refutation of Strangulation: Daily Life, Morning 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey! Here's a quick trigger warning for suicide. There will be another trigger warning for suicide on chapter 36. Chapter 37 will be the class trial for this death, so feel free to do whatever will make you comfortable.

It all had happened so suddenly. The announcement played as usual. Almost everyone woke up right before it or right after the announcement. Ciel had to knock on Soma’s door just to get him to wake up. Everything seemed fine once he was wide awake and ready to take on the day, though. Ciel, Alois, Sieglinde, and Soma agreed to gather at the dining hall, assuming that Sebastian wanted to talk to everyone about escape. The group of four were the first to arrive. Soon, the others joined and settled down at one big table. They all tried to ignore how empty the table was in comparison to the first couple of days. 

And then the question that started the cycle once again was asked. 

“Where’s Nina?” Hannah asked Grell. Grell looked around, realizing that Nina was the only one who wasn’t there. Others started to realize the exact same thing. Ciel stood up. 

“We should go find her,” he said, “Sebastian. I order you to go find Nina.” 

“Yes, my Lord,” he spoke in an incredibly serious tone before quickly walking away. Alois looked at Ciel with wide eyes. 

“...Do you think she-” 

“Do I think she  _ what _ ?” Ciel asked, narrowing his eyes at him, “I fear that only the worst could have happened.” 

“Then we should all look for her,” Grell said, quickly standing up. The others agreed, leaving only Ciel and Sieglinde at the table. Ciel stared at the dining hall doors.

“...This can’t be happening,” Ciel said to himself, “Not again. I refuse.” 

“It’s okay, Ciel. I don’t think she’s-” 

“You don’t know that!” Ciel raised his voice, “None of us do!” Sieglinde stared at him with wide eyes. 

“...Well. We should find out,” she said. Ciel looked at her. 

“Sure, sure,” he said, slowly nodding his head, “Let’s go.” The two walked down the dorm hallway and landed on Nina’s door. They knocked on it, but no one answered. Ciel frowned and twisted the doorknob and the door opened. They both hesitated to walk in, but Sieglinde eventually dragged Ciel into Nina’s room. It looked like a normal dorm room, but it looked recently cleaned and organized.

“This is strange,” Ciel said, shaking his head, “I don’t like this one bit.” 

“Maybe she just forgot to lock it,” Sieglinde said despite her own fear growing. What if Nina really had been killed? 

But what if she was on the brink of death? Could she be saved? 

“We should find her!” Sieglinde said, grabbing Ciel’s hand and running the best she could with one crutch. 

“Sieglinde, slow down,” Ciel tried to stop multiple times, “We can’t just run around.” Nevertheless, Sieglinde continued to run. She headed for the first place that came to mind. The place that Nina spent the most time in. 

“Nina!” Sieglinde shouted as she let go of Ciel’s hand to slam the door open. However, her look of determination was immediately replaced with one of shock and fear. Ciel’s heartbeat quickened. 

Nina had been hung from a light fixture, the front of her body turned away from the group. 

Ciel screamed, immediately turning away. Sieglinde ran her hands down her face. 

This wasn’t real.  _ This wasn’t real.  _ **_This wasn’t real._ **

“Young master!” Sebastian shouted out of habit as he finally saw the two of them. He ran over and instinctively grabbed Ciel’s shoulders. He couldn’t believe the sight in the library. 

Well, he could. It was real, but Nina? Of all people to take their own lives… Nina? He walked into the library, letting go of Ciel’s shoulder as he did so. The others soon arrived at the library. 

“... Holy shit!” Alois said loudly. Hannah frowned and placed a hand on his shoulder. Alois looked up at her. Weirdly, he didn’t feel like he should swat her hand away. The remaining alumni watched as Sebastian looked Nina over. His nose scrunched in frustration and disturbance. 

“This… This is odd,” he said to everyone, “Odd indeed.” 

The familiar chime played. Monokuma announced that a body had been discovered and that a class trial would begin very soon. The emphasis on “very soon” sent a chill down everyone’s spines. 

“... This calls for immediate action,” Claude Faustus said, “Sebastian, deal with Sieglinde and Ciel. Alois, Soma… Help as well. You five will investigate the crime scene and then investigate whatever else you deem fitting. Sebastian, watch over the crime scene as well. Grell, Hannah: You will be in charge of investigating Nina’s room. Undertaker… a word before we work together.” He immediately walked away, Undertaker sighing before following him to the first floor. Hannah and Grell did the same, heading right to Nina’s room. Sebastian let out a sigh. 

“That’s… suspicious,” Soma said about Claude before gasping, “Ciel! Are you alright?” By the look of it, Ciel was not alright. However, he managed to slowly return to his normal posture despite his wide-eye stare. 

“... Yes,” he said, “Let’s investigate.” His voice had taken on a trembling quality. Phantomhive also couldn’t directly look at the body.

“Can we… take her down?” Ciel asked, “Out of respect for her.” 

“Not so fast!” Monokuma said, “I have brought you the Monokuma File.” 

“Right,” Ciel said as he took the file, managing to look normal aside from his wide eye. 

“When you said ‘the class trial will occur very soon’... how soon are we talking?” Alois asked Monokuma. Monokuma stared at him. 

“Soon,” he replied before leaving. Alois huffed and crossed his arms. What a disrespectful bear! 

  
  


Hopeful Lesson #5: Realness is a subjective concept. Hope is not. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The investigation and class trial chapters will most likely be long, so this one was purposefully written to be short. I hope you understand + await for the upcoming chapters!


	36. It Gets Worse: Refutation of Strangulation: Deadly Life, Investigation

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's a second TW for suicide. The next chapter will be the class trial for this case. After that, there will be no direct mention of suicide.

**INVESTIGATE!**

After Sebastian had brought Nina down to the floor, he and Ciel examined her body. 

“... I apologize for acting like that,” Ciel said, “The sight of her was just shocking.” 

“Oh, do not apologize, my lord,” Sebastian replied, “I assure you that your reaction was very normal. Now… let’s see.” The two continued to look over her body before coming to a conclusion, glancing at the Monokuma File.

**_Monokuma File #4:_ **

_ “The victim was Nina Hopkins. She passed in the library, found hanging on a ceiling light. There is a light rope burn on her palms and fingertips. The time of death was 7:00 AM.”  _

“It definitely looks like she was unable to breathe… but… here’s the issue,” Sebastian began to say, but Ciel finished his sentence.

“There’s nail marks and scratches on her neck,” Ciel agreed, “But there’s also signs of how tight the rope was around her neck.” Sebastian agreed. 

“This certainly isn’t good… do you think someone is trying to pass off a murder as a suicide?’ He asked. 

“We need more information for that. It’s possible that these marks are from her,” Ciel sighed, standing up and looking at Alois, Soma, and Sieglinde. Then, he looked at what exactly was at the crime scene; she had certainly used a chair to hoist herself up, but there was a small skid mark on the seat. This chair was right next to where she was hanging. Could all of this just be the result of a terrible accident? That would explain the rope burn. 

Ciel thought about it like this; Nina may have been intentionally trying to end her own life, but she had second thoughts. Whoever was with her or passing by decided not to waste the perfect opportunity, pushing her to hang herself accidentally. Or she had just slipped and fell, ending her life too early. After all, the ceiling was tall. With Nina’s height, it was probably likely that she needed to step on tip-toes to reach the light fixture. Perhaps she tried to save herself by holding onto the very rope that could kill her. She eventually slipped and hung herself. 

“Maybe she toppled off,” Ciel murmured to himself as he examined the chair. There were no other skid marks. This made him frown.

“Sebastian… I didn’t notice it, but are there any other injuries?” 

“No. She was unable to breathe for sure, but her neck seems… broken? From what I see, anyways. But nothing gruesome. Nothing that would cause extensive bleeding. Are you trying to weed out the cause of death? It’s asphyxiation no matter what, whether self-inflicted or not.” Ciel stared at him. 

“You really think so?” 

“Isn’t it obvious, Ciel?” Alois asked as he walked over to him, “She was hanged. Surely this was not the work of anyone else.” 

“We have to consider everything,” Sieglinde said with confidence, her arms crossed. 

“But we all agreed not to kill each other. After Will and Ronald… You remember yesterday, don’t you?!” Alois raised his voice, hands on his hips. Sieglinde stared at him with a serious frown.

“Wait… Ciel!” Alois suddenly said before covering his mouth, Ciel staring at him now. 

“What?” Ciel asked. 

“You said Nina would die… and she did!” He said, pointing at him. 

“Shut up!” Ciel quickly shouted back, “I said that because she didn’t have any allies.” Everyone stared at him.

“...What do you mean by that?” Sieglinde asked, “We… We all agreed to work together. We’re no longer separated groups. We’re one team.” Ciel started shaking his head.

“No… It’s obvious that we’re still grouped. We’re not functioning as a unit, no matter how much I want to believe or boast that we are. Maybe it was never possible to begin with, but that’s not important. If we can figure out who killed Nina, we can then finally work as a unit. Maybe,” Ciel said, “It’s hard to tell. It’s like I told you right after I said that, Alois… Anything could happen. We’re all unpredictable. All of us. It’s in our nature and it will always be in our nature, but that’s how we’ve lived for this long and it’s how we will defeat the Mastermind.” Everyone stared at him when Sieglinde smiled, determination in her eyes. 

“I agree! So right now we must consider every possibility.” Everyone in the room but Alois immediately agreed. Alois caved in and listened to them go through all of the possibilities.

“Who was with Nina last?” Sebastian asked. 

“I believe we all were. We were all in the gym and then we all left,” Ciel replied.

“But did we all leave at the same time?” Sebastian posed this question while placing a finger to his chin. Everyone looked around at one another.

“I cannot say this for sure, but I believe we all walked out together, including Nina,” Soma said at last. The others agreed. They then decided who out of them all would be most likely to kill Nina.

“If I’m going to be honest… I’d say that you’re most likely to kill her, Sebastian,” Ciel said with a frown. Sebastian stared at him, a small smile on his face. 

“I understand why you think that, but I obviously didn’t. Perhaps Alois is right; this was a suicide - maybe an accidental one - and nothing more.” 

“Hold on,” Alois crossed his arms, “Why are you agreeing with me?”

“Because you’re right,” Sebastian said with a shrug. Alois glared at him, gritting his teeth. Something about how this was playing felt all-too-suspicious for Alois. 

“Wait,” Ciel said, “We can’t accuse one another. Let’s find all the evidence we need now and discuss if we have extra time.” 

“... Fine,” Alois agreed, Sebastian nodding along. Alois frowned and crossed his arms; Sebastian was now too suspicious to him. Ciel explained that he and Sieglinde would look at Nina’s room again while the others looked around and kept an eye out on the others for any suspicious activity. As they all dispersed, Ciel and Sieglinde walking to Nina’s room, the air began to grow tense as it naturally would; as much as they didn’t want to believe it, suspicion and paranoia were natural responses to this entire situation. Ciel and Sieglinde tried to ignore this fact the moment they stepped foot in Nina’s room. Sieglinde ignored how odd it was that Ciel apparently said that Nina would die next while Ciel ignored thoughts about any of his allies doing something like this. 

“... Sieglinde,” he said as he opened a drawer, “I don’t think any of us did this. By us, I mean you, me, Alois, and Soma.” Sieglinde looked at him and felt the urge to agree despite her inner paranoia. 

“Yeah. If she didn’t do it herself, then… there’s no way it was any of us,” she told him, biting her lip. They continued to look around when Ciel found papers in the bottom-most drawer. Every room did come with a paper pad. He started pulling them out and realized how many there were. 

“... Are these notes?” Sieglinde asked. 

“Looks like it,” Ciel said as he started to open one. However, once he began to read through it, his eyes widened. Sieglinde looked over his shoulder and had the same reaction. What they were looking at was Ronald’s handwriting, at least according to the printed name and signature at the bottom. However, the contents of this letter were odd. 

> “Nina-- 

> Are you sure about this? I really hope that you’re not doing anything impulsive because of Mey-Rin. Mey-Rin’s death really affected me, too, you know; I couldn’t believe she was here to begin with. I mean… to finally meet the girl who I knew had a crush on me when I also had a crush on her and we just never got to say anything to each other… only for her to die? I don’t understand why we were put in this game.

> I bet it’s because of Sutcliff and Michaelis. Sutcliff is not a bad person by any means, but she’s… done some shit. She just hasn’t accidentally killed one or two people; she really did murder like three or four people. I guess that makes her a serial killer (she killed them all within one and a half months), but she wasn’t murdering anyone that didn’t deserve it. If she killed any other people, I wouldn’t know about it; she only told me about those murders. Michaelis, on the other hand… It’s hard to say in writing what he’s like. But I will say this: I have a theory that we aren’t going to survive. Think about it: we’re very normal in comparison to Sutcliff and Michaelis. Even compare yourself to someone like Claude; he’s weird, isn’t he? I mean he looks normal, sure, but he’s weird. But you and I… and Will… we’re all normal if you really think about it. I might be the most fucked up out of the three of us, though. It’s odd how we’ve even survived this far in the first place. I can’t believe that Mey-Rin died before us. She really deserves to be alive. 

> It gets worse: I don’t hate Wolfram. I understand where he’s coming from; if Sutcliff was in danger, I’d easily fight alongside her or fight for her. I’m sure that you would’ve done the same for Mey-Rin. I love Sutcliff in the way that you love Mey-Rin, and Wolfram seemed like Sieglinde’s guardian. So I definitely get why he did that… but for Alois to make it that traumatizing for you and even all of us… that was what made it the worst. If it was just clear from the beginning that she had been in a fight, then it would’ve been easier for us to move on; it’d make sense for Mey-Rin to get into a fight like that, after all.

> Meet me in the library after the nighttime announcement. I need to talk to you more about this. 

> Cheers, 
> 
> Ronald”

Ciel and Sieglinde looked at one another and looked at the letter below it. 

> “Ron: 

> After reading your letter, I’ve decided to follow through with it. I’m not entirely sure how I’ll be able to actually do it, but something has to be done. If I do this, then you guys will find a loophole and get out of this game. After all, what happens when the blackened is also the victim? There’s no rule against it, after all. 

> Anyways, I hope you can at least figure out your grudge with Will. I feel so much better now that I worked things out with Sieglinde. I want the motive out of the way so that Sieglinde won’t be wrongly blamed… or you can show them these letters. Do whatever to get out, okay? I don’t care if they don’t listen, you have to convince them.

> Nina xx” 

Ciel shivered and grabbed all of the notes; any of these could help during the class trial. Sieglinde and Ciel silently agreed to look in Ronald’s room, which was unlocked. They immediately looked through his drawers. Again, in the bottom drawer, they found a note. But just one note. 

> “To whoever’s reading--

> Let me start by saying that I know what I’m about to do today is awful. It’s the worst thing I’ve ever done in my life and I’m terrified to do it. I don’t want to go through with it but I have no choice; if I want to get out, this is how I do it. There’s no way to get around the rules. This is a nightmarish warzone where the narrative is entirely controlled by a few people; it is my belief there are two Masterminds. After talking with Undertaker, we came to this decision. Two people in this place are controlling the narrative. They’re always seen together and or know each other for a long time. If it’s only the latter, then they don’t spend a lot of time together at all. Undertaker will never say that Michaelis isn’t one of them, but I’m willing to say that he isn’t, but it’s also entirely possible that he is. That guy just really, really sucks. There’s really nothing else to it aside from his patronizing attitude. 

> It gets worse: I’ve considered many, many times to just end my own life. Both in and out of this “game”, of course. I would’ve, but… I don’t want Sutcliff or Nina to get upset because of my death and do something reckless or follow suit. And Will… well, he’d probably be upset, too. 

> That’s why I’m going to do this today and live with whatever outcome comes my way. I’m sure as hell going to push for my “innocence”, though. 
> 
> You know. Because I’m not innocent. 

> I don’t think any of us came in here innocent, but I fear that we’re all wearing down. Even the most resilient of us are beginning to wear down. I can feel it. That’s why I have to do this; I don’t want to be a victim. I would rather die as someone who at least tried to escape than someone who sat by expecting others to do it for me. 

> It gets worse. 

> It gets worse.

> It gets worse. 

> I wanted this to be more meaningful, but I just can’t find anything else to say. The world is crashing down and I’m the only one that can stop it from doing so.

> If you’re reading this, then I’ve done it. If no one has read this until much later, then I’ve done it. I’ll have saved the world by just doing this one thing, no matter the outcome of my fate.

> It’s a necessary sacrifice, if you will.

> Ronald Knox” 

“This is… what is this?” Sieglinde asked, her voice soft and wavering. Ciel looked at her. 

“This is demented. Not on Ronald’s end, though… this game feels like it was made to specifically torture us,” Ciel said, “Whoever doesn’t seem like they’re being tortured is certainly the Mastermind.” 

“...Ciel. Can we look around Mey-Rin’s room? This should be the last place we need to check.” Ciel agreed to do so after they looked through the rest of Ronald’s room.Coming up with nothing, they moved on to Mey-Rin’s room. However, the door wouldn’t budge. That’s when Monokuma appeared. 

“Why are you two trying to get in there?” Monokuma asked, looking angered. 

“We’re investigating,” Ciel said, frowning right back at him. Monokuma tilted his head to the side before suddenly raging. 

“It’s not important to this trial! If it was, I’d let you in, but what business do you have-” 

“Did Mey-Rin ever use the notepad in her room?” Ciel interrupted, “You of all people would know.” With a huff, Monokuma admitted that she hadn’t. 

“I’m not allowed to lie during investigations and trials,” Monokuma added, “So don’t throw a fit saying I’m lying to you! Because I only lie before and after investigations and trials.” 

“Got it,” Ciel sighed, irritated by his presence. At that point, Alois, Soma, and Sebastian walked over to them. 

“Well, we figured out that the rope is from the repository,” Soma told Ciel and Sieglinde, “Nothing else, though.” Monokuma slowly disappeared as they continued to discuss their evidence.

“So Nina and Ronald could’ve been working together during the last murder?” Sebastian asked aloud, not really posing this question as one that could be answered. 

“It depends entirely when Ronald wrote that letter. There’s no dates and it could either be the day of the murder or the day before it,” Ciel replied nonetheless. 

“...Good to note for sure,” Sebastian said with a nod. That’s when Ciel realized something.

“Wait,” he said, “If I remember… weren’t Claude and Nina oddly close?” 

“If I knew, then she would’ve died way earlier,” Alois frowned, shaking his head, “And I would know.” 

“But they did mention that they knew about William and I confiding in one another. They hung out at least once,” Sebastian added. Ciel suddenly left, looking for Claude despite everyone’s protests. He didn’t listen to their warnings, obviously. As he wandered the school, he found himself on the third floor. The rec room, the room where William helped Ciel out with the very first class trial. He heard a man softly humming, which quickened his heartbeat. He felt like he was a protagonist facing the final boss of a video game. Nevertheless, he took a deep breath and opened the door. Claude immediately stopped humming and looked over at him.

“...Is there something you need to ask me?” he asked, as if he was the one running around and solving these class trials. Ciel completely stepped into the room before saying anything.

“We need to talk,” Ciel replied, walking over to the pool table. Claude stared at him; it appeared that he had been organizing the magazine rack at a time like this. Silence passed before Claude asked what they needed to talk about.

“Nina,” Ciel simply said, then added, “We need to talk about you two.” 

“What do you mean?” 

“You did at least occasionally talk to Nina, right?” Ciel asked. Claude nodded in agreement. 

“I would say that she weirdly trusted me,” Claude said with a nod, “I have no clue as to why.” Ciel nodded along and took a note of that. Claude’s brow instinctively twitched. 

“I remember now… During the investigation of Mey-Rin’s death, you really helped her remain calm,” Ciel mused to himself. 

“I’ve been that person to many people for many, many years,” Claude replied, “And not many people want to do it. I’d say even less people actually could calm others down like I can.” Ciel nodded once more. 

“...What did you really come here to ask me about?” Claude asked in the exact way Ciel had been asking him questions. Ciel looked up at him.

“I’m really just asking about Nina,” Ciel said. 

“Yes, I know that. But I think everyone sees me as the most likely suspect… or do they think Sebastian is most likely to harm her?” 

“...Do you think she’s been murdered?” Ciel asked, wondering if he could catch him slipping up if he actually murdered her.

“Absolutely not. It was a suicide, through and through. This class trial should be very short.” 

“... I have plenty of things to talk about, actually,” Ciel told him, frowning. Claude frowned back. 

“Are they important to her death?” 

“Of course they are.”

“... Fine,” Claude huffed, looking over at the rec room door, “What do the others think?” 

“I believe we’re all leaning towards suicide.” Claude nodded softly, now back to staring at Ciel. Ciel, however, did not look up at him. 

“You know, if you have any evidence to share, now would be the time to do it,” Ciel said. Claude frowned and looked at the rec room door again. 

“I don’t have any, unfortunately. I will say… since the time of death was at exactly seven AM, everyone was in their room getting ready for the day or were sleeping. For this case, I’d assumed that anyone who was out of their room would be suspicious. The only one out of her room before that time was Nina herself.” Ciel finally looked up at him, a determined look on his face. 

“How can we be so sure?” Ciel asked him. Claude said nothing to him, which made Ciel scoff. 

“...Fine. I imagine that’s all I need right now,” Ciel said as he stood up. Right as he was about to leave, Claude stopped him by calling out his name. Ciel turned around and was faced with one final note; this note, however, was inside an envelope. The front of the envelope only had Claude’s name written on it. 

“She gave this to me in the gym,” Claude admitted at last. Ciel slowly looked up at him.

“Why didn’t you give me this in the first place?!” Ciel asked.

“... Because I didn’t want to lose something like that. I would like to have it back after the class trial,” Claude explained, no longer staring at Ciel or the door. He was staring at nothing in particular, just looking straight ahead.

“Of course, I understand-” 

“I also wanted to make the game more interesting by omitting it, but… since you came here for something to use, I might as well add it to the pile of evidence. I believe it’s clear proof that this was a suicide and nothing more.” At first, Ciel wanted to just agree, but something about those twon sentences rubbed him the wrong way.

“What? You wanted to make the game ‘interesting’? Isn’t that exactly what Alois did by stringing up Mey-Rin?”

“I only almost omitted a letter. That’s all,” Claude replied, his tone unwavering. 

“...Right,” Ciel said, about to apologize. However, an announcement began to play.

“STUDENTS! Let’s cut to the chase and start this class trial, okay? Okay!” Monokuma quickly spoke, sounding oh-so-cheerful to watch the remaining alumni discuss what was most likely a suicide. Ciel decided to head down to the elevator, not waiting for Claude. 

Once he arrived, he wished that he did. 

“Where’s Claude?” Hannah asked him. Alois looked at him, but said nothing.

“I believe he’s in the rec room,” Ciel said, “Why, is there reason I should suspect him?” 

“No,” Hannah quickly shook her head, “I just… This just feels awful. Are you really going to vote for Nina for her own death?” 

“... Seems like it,” Ciel said, sighing softly. She was right; the air felt full of dread. Claude was the last to arrive, completely void of emotion; he looked cold, reserved, and brooding. No one wanted to get on the elevator until Soma took a deep breath and strode into the elevator. Everyone stared at him.

“We have to do this,” Soma said. Sieglinde agreed and stepped onto the elevator.

“I believe this is what Nina wanted,” she said. The others decided to get on the elevator that had once been crowded with 16 people. Now? Only 9 remained. 

How many more had to die for this “game”? 

  
  


Hopeful Lesson #6: There is no such thing as a necessary sacrifice 

when it comes to human life.


	37. It Gets Worse: Refutation of Strangulation: Deadly Life, Class Trial

The courtroom was donned in different shades of brown and looked as if Nina herself styled it. Ciel wondered how the Mastermind was changing the decor every single trial. However, that question would be asked later. For now, Monokuma was growing impatient. How odd for someone who seemed to love class trials. In fact…

“Monokuma… your attitude itself is evidence that Nina caused her own death,” he said.

“Wha-what?” Monokuma asked, tilting his head to the side, a paw pressed against his chin, “What do you mean? He wasn’t scared or even nervous; he was genuinely curious. 

“Normally, you’re only impatient if the trial’s slow. To be impatient from the beginning is to admit that nothing that suits your sick, twisted mind occurred. I imagine that you find something as tragic as suicide boring, therefore-”

“You’re assuming,” the bear said rather menacingly, “I… It depends on the suicide, really! For example… a mass suicide is always-”

“Jesus Christ,” Claude suddenly interrupted, “I don’t want to hear it.” His arms were crossed and his face, while lacking emotion, looked determined. 

He continued, “We can all agree that this was a suicide, right? However… there’s still evidence we need to look through.” Ciel nodded in agreement. 

“Hold on,” Undertaker and HAnnah said at almost the exact same time. Claude’s brows furrowed. 

“What is it?” He asked, obviously annoyed. 

“Don’t even give me that attitude,” Undertaker replied while fixing his sunglasses, “We need to address the elephant in the room.” 

“Agreed. Claude… You’re most likely to murder her,” Hannah said, arms crossed as well.

“... Uh-huh. And this matters because…?” 

“You specifically pulled me aside to ask what I thought about all of this,” Undertaker frowned, leaning on his 

“Because I trust you,” Claude said with a sharp nod, “Is that not okay?” 

“And you don’t trust me?” Alois asked, eyes wide. 

“That’s not it,” Claude shook his head, “Honestly, Alois- what could you or anyone else give me that be some solid insight on this case?” 

“Hold on,” Ciel stepped up, “If we could go into the evidence I’ve compiled?”

“Proceed,” Claude replied. Ciel then revealed the letters. 

“These are between Ronald and Nina.”

“...What’s the order that these were written?” Alois asked as the letters were passed around. Ciel thought for a moment. 

“Nina wrote that letter first, then Ronald responded. However, the letter that Nina mentions is… this one right here,” Ciel then revealed Ron’s admission of guilt and his plans. That, too, was passed around. 

“... So it’s a suicide,” Claude reiterated. 

“Wait a minute,” Alois said, waving his hands around, “Frankly, I’m not convinced that this is just suicide.” Hannah and Undertaker agreed with that. 

“After all… It’s clear that Grell is a serial killer.”

“Wh- But Alois,” Ciel grasped his podium. Everyone suddenly looked at Grell. She had been quiet the entire time; it was completely unlike her. Her hands were even clasped in front of her. 

“Grell… what do you think happened?” Ciel asked calmly. Grell slowly looked up, realizing that she’d been quiet for too long. She swore to herself before replying.

“... It’s my belief that Nina killed herself, but we haven’t put any nuance in this,” she said, then cleared her throat, slowly regaining confidence, “As someone who’s attempted, this… this is very much a successful attempt. I knew Ronald attempted before this, but I didn’t know if he had actually attempted during this game. He’d clearly lost most of his mind at that point. Well… I think that’s what happened to Nina, too. And what they’re writing down… it’s true. At least in their minds, it is. And it even fits. None of us - the current survivors - are normal.” Ciel agreed with this. 

“This seems sound.”

“Wait,” Hannah interjected, her voice soft, “It’s just… It’s just too convenient.”

“Well,” Claude huffed, “Sometimes convenient things happen.” 

“What do you mean ‘convenient’? This is anything but convenient,” Sebastian glared at the two of them, “Convenient… Convenient. Now, why would you use a word like that about a woman’s suicide? Hm?” 

The moment he realized that Sebastian was antagonizing them, Ciel sputtered, “Sebastian-” 

“What?” Claude asked Sebastian, hands on his hips.

“I was just using the word because it’s too coincidental that Nina dies the morning after the motive was revealed,” Hannah defended herself. 

“Does the motive matter?” Ciel asked, “If it’s a suicide, then the motive is only to end her own life.” Most agreed. 

“... Well, I talked to her the night before. That was before the motive announcement,” Undertaker sighed, “It doesn’t make sense.”

“When you’re in that state of mind, you do things that don’t make sense,” Grell countered, “Nina was probably in great suffering. You read those notes, didn’t you? Whoever isn’t suffering here is most certainly the Mastermind.” Undertaker stared at her and let out a soft laugh. 

“I suppose you’re right,” he said with a nod. There was silence after all of this; everyone was contemplating the truth of this case. Could it really be true? Was this a suicide? Or was this the best murder plan in history? 

“Ciel?” Soma asked, “What’s that in your hand?” He was pointing at the envelope Claude gave him. Ciel jumped and opened it. 

“Right,” he said as he opened the letter, “Claude gave me this.” He then read the letter out loud. 

> “Everyone: 
> 
> To start, I just want to say that I’m sorry. I’m sorry for making you go through a class trial, I’m sorry that I wasn’t that helpful, and I’m sorry that I just… left. There was no other choice, though, you see! It was either this or… possibly never escaping. I felt that my days were numbered, so I left this letter with the one person I could trust, the man who pulled me aside from the chaos and helped me stay grounded in reality when all I wanted to do was do what I did today. Claude Faustus, I thank you for doing that. If you hadn’t… there’d be two class trials one after the other! But I’m glad that didn’t happen. I’m glad that you guys had a few days to recuperate after Will and Ronald. Those two were supposed to be there with you all, but Ronald went off-script and… sacrificed himself and William. It’s similar to what I’ve done. I wish I could see your faces while you’re all reading this. Well, maybe I’ll be able to! Who knows if the afterlife’s real or not, right? Maybe all of us are now watching you all continue to stay strong and escape this hellhole. 
> 
> Anyways. I really hope that you guys are just… numb to death at this point. That sounds so awful, but I don’t want you all to be breaking down when you should realize that no one that could kill is left. 
> 
> You see, I could’ve. I really could’ve. But this was my best way out… at least in my opinion. I was also an easy target, you see, so by taking myself out… that leaves no weak links in the group. You’re all gonna make it out and defeat these evil bastards. I believe in you all. 
> 
> I apologize for my departure, but I really hope that you all now understand why I’m doing this. You’re all such lovely people, even if we’ve done some messed up things. I myself am no saint. No one is, though. 
> 
> Please proceed with the class trial and vote for me. It’ll look weird, but trust me. It’s a loophole. Do it and make me proud!
> 
> Nina xx ♡
> 
> PS: If you vote for anyone else as the blackened, you’re an absolute nut. Do not throw this opportunity away. If you do, I’ll haunt you all. But wouldn’t that mean that you’d all also be dead? Hmm. Will have to see how haunting works.”

No one said a word. Ciel set the letter down. They wordlessly agreed that there was nothing else to be said during the class trial. They’d ask questions later.

“Wha-what?” Monokuma asked them all, “Are we ready to vote? Okay, then! Let’s do it!” The votes were put in quickly. 

**WHO RECEIVED THE MOST VOTES?**

**…**

**…**

**...**

**NINA HOPKINS!**

“Oh, darn! That’s why you all stayed silent,” Monokuma growled, annoyed that they were right once again, “Why didn’t you ask any more questions?! This isn’t like any of you!” Ciel glared at the bear. 

“... Nina wrote that letter. We didn’t need any other evidence, really,” Ciel sighed, “But it helped, I guess. Now… I have questions.” 

“I assume this starts with me,” Grell sighed immediately, “Fine, let me explain. I was… damn, there’s no good way to say this.” 

“So just say it,” Hannah said in a soft but assuring voice. Grell nodded and continued to speak. 

“I killed four people as Ronald mentioned, but… Let’s just say that it was for something entirely unrelated to my job. Moreso, it was for my actual job.” 

“Don’t tell me you’re an assassin,” Sebastian said with a smirk. Grell laughed harshly.

“Hardly,” she replied, “I’m… Well, I’m no Ultimate Spy, but I dabble in it. You could call it my day job.” 

“That is not dabbling,” Alois said with a frown, almost disgusted. It was almost as if he would have preferred her to be a serial killer.

“I didn’t want to let Ronald know much, but he noticed I had blood on me despite all of the red I was wearing. I confessed as if I had killed four pedophiles. I can’t let you know who I killed, though. Besides, I knew that he wouldn’t tell anyone. He was probably attracted and scared of me at the same time. That’s how it usually goes.” She let out a soft sigh. 

“So that’s why you’re flexible,” Hannah said with a soft teasing smirk. Grell giggled, but both of them made Claude roll his eyes. 

“... Who here isn’t affected by a mental illness of some sorts, even if it’s not diagnosed?” Undertaker suddenly asked after a few beats of silence. No one stepped forward. 

“That’s what I thought. Isn’t that odd? Why put all of these mentally ill people in a hellish place where we’d crumble against the pressure?” 

“Well…,” Ciel tried to debate this in order to defend Lizzy, Agni, Wolfram, and Mey-Rin, but there wasn’t much to defend. 

“Hmm? What is it?” Undertaker asked, a smile on his face. Ciel shook his head, explained that it was nothing, and apologized. 

“... So no execution?” Sebastian asked. But Monokuma had already left, so his question was answered by his lack of presence.

“Let’s leave, then!” Soma spoke suddenly, Sieglinde and Alois agreeing. 

“In one moment… Wait. Leave… Are we allowed to escape, then?” Ciel asked aloud, “Or… was this not a loophole?” This wasn’t for nothing, though. Ciel couldn’t bear to think that she had died in vain. Monokuma suddenly appeared. 

“...Loophole? Oh, right, that silly idea. Of course that wasn’t a loophole, silly! The game doesn’t stop because she killed herself!” Monokuma laughed mockingly, “We’re still going strong!” Ciel looked like he was about to strangle the bear. 

“Okay. Leave, then,” Sebastian ordered Monokuma. Monokuma stared at him before leaving so slowly that it was comical. However, no one laughed. Sebastian stayed at Ciel’s side until he was calm again. Everyone else looked at one another, wondering what the next move was. That’s when Claude just walked back to the elevator. No one moved until Ciel and Sebastian followed him. They all silently left the courtroom. 

What was this? Why did this have to happen? Was this… the end of the old era of killing? Nothing was going to happen now, right? With that suicide… would anyone really try to kill? What they all needed to do was figure out a way to escape.

They needed to find that loophole. 

Hopeful Lesson #7: That loophole will come eventually. Keep holding on. 


End file.
